Uttarakhand High Court declines to quash FIR against man for instigating mob against driver carrying buffalo meat
Court rejects plea of Madan Mohan Joshi accused of inciting lynching through live Facebook claims of cow meat transportation
The Uttarakhand High Court has refused to quash an FIR registered against Madan Mohan Joshi, who allegedly instigated a mob to lynch a vehicle driver on the false claim that the driver was transporting cow meat. A Division Bench of Chief Justice G Narendra and Justice Subhash Upadhyay condemned Joshi’s actions after noting his live Facebook broadcast warning of a nationwide “Kranti” (revolution), which was seen as an affront to democratically elected governments.
The incident involved a vehicle carrying buffalo meat being stopped and assaulted by a mob that Joshi is accused of instigating through false allegations. The police intervened to rescue the driver. Joshi denied assault charges, claiming he tried to calm the mob. However, the court highlighted victim and witness identifications linking Joshi to the scene and his admission of being present during the attack and the Facebook live telecast.
The Court remarked that investigation and trial must proceed without interference and rejected Joshi’s plea for protection from arrest, further noting a non-bailable warrant was already issued after he evaded the police. It emphasized that a fair investigation must not be preempted by court intervention.
The plea was dismissed, with State and complainant represented by respective counsel.