Supreme Court Quashes Multiple FIRs Against Mohammed Zubair: A Landmark Ruling on Free Speech

The case of Mohammed Zubair vs. State of NCT of Delhi & Ors. stands as a landmark ruling regarding the protection of personal liberty and the safeguarding of journalistic freedom in India. The Supreme Court’s decision to quash multiple FIRs against Zubair and transfer the remaining cases to a single investigative body under the Delhi Police Special Cell highlights the importance of preventing misuse of the criminal justice system to target individuals for their expression.

Mohammed Zubair, a journalist and co-founder of ALT News, a fact-checking portal, was arrested on June 27, 2022, for allegedly making social media posts that incited communal disharmony. The arrest triggered nationwide debate over free speech, the role of journalists in society, and the use of multiple FIRs as a means of harassment. The Supreme Court’s ruling in his favor, delivered by a bench of Dr. Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, Surya Kant, and A.S. Bopanna, emphasized that the criminal law process should not be weaponized to suppress dissent.

Background of the Case

Zubair was arrested based on an FIR No. 172/2022 filed at the Delhi Police Special Cell on June 20, 2022, under Sections 153-A, 295-A, 201, and 120-B of IPC. The police alleged that his tweets promoted religious enmity. Subsequently, additional charges under Section 35 of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) were added.

His arrest led to an avalanche of additional FIRs being filed in different parts of Uttar Pradesh, including in Ghaziabad, Muzaffarnagar, Sitapur, Lakhimpur, and Hathras, under similar allegations. The Uttar Pradesh Police formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe these cases.

Despite securing bail on July 15, 2022, in one of the Delhi FIRs, Zubair remained in custody due to successive remand orders in the Uttar Pradesh cases. His legal team approached the Supreme Court, seeking the quashing of these FIRs or, alternatively, their consolidation to prevent an endless cycle of judicial proceedings.

Key Legal Issues

Did Zubair’s social media posts genuinely incite communal disharmony?
Were multiple FIRs filed with an intent to harass and suppress journalistic freedom?
Should multiple FIRs with identical allegations be consolidated under a single investigative agency?
Did his prolonged detention violate his right to personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution?

Petitioner’s Arguments (Mohammed Zubair)

Zubair’s counsel argued that the FIRs were an abuse of law aimed at suppressing his journalistic work.
The tweets in question did not provoke violence and were made in public interest to counter misinformation.
The use of multiple FIRs with identical allegations across different jurisdictions created a chilling effect on free speech.
The police were selectively targeting Zubair while ignoring others who made genuinely inflammatory statements.
The Supreme Court had a duty to prevent the misuse of legal provisions for harassment.

Respondents’ Arguments (State of Uttar Pradesh)

The government claimed that Zubair’s tweets had the potential to cause communal unrest.
His posts were allegedly intended to provoke religious groups and disrupt public harmony.
The SIT was necessary to investigate the multiple complaints filed against him.
The police sought further custodial interrogation to investigate foreign funding sources linked to his organization.
Granting bail to Zubair would set a precedent encouraging others to post controversial content without consequences.

Supreme Court’s Observations

The Supreme Court made crucial observations about the case, reinforcing the importance of protecting individual liberties and preventing legal harassment:

Multiple FIRs against Zubair based on the same tweets indicated a coordinated attempt to target him unfairly.
His arrest and repeated remand orders amounted to an abuse of the legal process.
“The machinery of criminal justice has been relentlessly employed against the petitioner.”
There was no evidence that his tweets caused actual violence or law and order issues.
Continuing criminal proceedings would result in an “endless round of harassment” against him.
The SIT formed by the Uttar Pradesh Police was redundant since the Delhi Police was already investigating similar allegations.

The Court ruled:

“The exercise of the power of arrest must be pursued sparingly. There is absolutely no justification to keep the petitioner in continued custody any further.”

Final Judgment

The Supreme Court issued the following directives:

Zubair was to be immediately released on interim bail in all pending FIRs.
All FIRs in Uttar Pradesh were to be transferred to the Delhi Police Special Cell.
The Uttar Pradesh SIT was disbanded, and no further probe would be conducted by state police.
No new FIRs on the same subject matter could be registered against Zubair without Supreme Court permission.
There was no restriction on his social media activity.

The ruling reaffirmed the principle that the legal system should not be misused to stifle free expression. The judgment set a precedent for protecting journalists and activists from being entangled in endless litigation on similar allegations.

Petitioner Name: Mohammed Zubair.
Respondent Name: State of NCT of Delhi & Ors..
Judgment By: Justice Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, Justice Surya Kant, Justice A S Bopanna.
Place Of Incident: Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.
Judgment Date: 19-07-2022.

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