The Allahabad High Court has observed that throwing non-vegetarian food waste into the river Ganga could hurt the religious sentiments of the Hindu community. The observation was made while granting bail to five of the 14 Muslim men accused in the controversial Varanasi Iftar boat case.
Justice Rajiv Lochan Shukla made the remarks on May 15 while hearing the bail plea of the accused, who were booked after allegedly organising a Roza Iftar gathering on a boat in the Ganga river in March and throwing leftover non-vegetarian food into the river.
According to the court order, the Ganga holds immense religious significance for Hindus and any act that disrupts communal harmony could potentially lead to larger tensions.
“The present case involves members of the Muslim community having a Roza Iftar party, and during the said Iftar party, while partaking of food, non-vegetarian food is said to have been consumed by the members of the Muslim community, who are then alleged to have thrown the remains into the River Ganges. This fact, in the dispassionate opinion of the Court, could rightly be said to hurt religious sentiments of the Hindu community,” the court observed.
At the same time, the High Court noted that the accused and their family members had expressed regret for the “pain caused to society at large.” The court said this expression of remorse was one of the factors considered while granting bail to five of the accused.
The case relates to an FIR lodged by Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) Varanasi unit president Rajat Jaiswal. In the complaint, 14 Muslim men were accused of hurting Hindu sentiments by allegedly consuming chicken biryani during an Iftar gathering on a boat over the Ganga and throwing the leftovers into the holy river.
Initially, police registered a case under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including charges related to defiling a place of worship, promoting enmity and public nuisance.
Later, more serious sections were added after the boat owners alleged that the accused had forcibly taken the boat from them and threatened them. Charges related to extortion under threat of death were also included in the case.
However, while examining the allegations, the High Court expressed doubt over the extortion claim made by the boatman, Anil Sahni. The court pointed out that the boat owner did not immediately file any complaint regarding force or threats before the registration of the FIR.
“It would be sufficient to note here that before registration of the case, the said boatman had not come forward to lodge any report or make any complaint regarding the extortion meted out to him. In the prima facie opinion of the Court, the delay by boatman Anil Sahni in coming forward with the allegations of extortion creates a suspicion on his story,” Justice Shukla observed.
The court ultimately granted bail to five accused while the investigation in the matter continues.
