Allahabad HC refuses to quash FIR against singer Neha Singh Rathore over her social media posts

The Allahabad High Court on Friday (September 19, 2025) refused to quash a First Information Report (FIR) lodged against folk singer Neha Singh Rathore, who is accused of promoting hatred between communities and endangering the sovereignty and unity of India with her allegedly provocative social media posts on the Pahalgam terror attack.

Quashing Ms. Rathore’s application seeking an order from the court to quash an FIR lodged against her at Lucknow’s Hazratganj police station in April this year, a Bench of Justices Syed Qamar Hasan Rizvi and Rajesh Singh Chauhan said that Article 19 of the Constitution of India gives all citizens the right of freedom of speech and expression but is subject to reasonable restrictions for preserving public order, decency, or morality.

Observing the contents of the Uttar Pradesh Police’s case diary submitted in the court, the Bench said that the case diary showed that the petitioner’s social media posts, which were widely circulated in Pakistan, were against India’s Prime Minister and Union Home Minister.

“The name of the Prime Minister of India has been used in a derogatory and disrespectful manner. In such comments, the petitioner has used a religious angle, and Bihar election angle, accusing the Prime Minister by name and saying that the BJP government is sacrificing the life of thousands of soldiers for its vested interest, pushing the country into war with a neighbouring country,” the court said.

The court noted the government counsel’s statements, describing the timings of the petitioner’s posts as “crucial” because they were circulated immediately after the tragedy at Pahalgam, in which 26 civilians were brutally killed by terrorists after knowing of their Hindu religion.

The government advocate, while challenging Ms. Rathore’s request, also submitted that at a time when the security and integrity of the country were under threat, and the government was taking all possible efforts to manage the situation, the petitioner was posting on social media “without a thought”.

“A bare perusal of her tweets would make it crystal clear that the petitioner is having so much vengeance against the BJP and its leaders, including the Prime Minister. In her tweets, she commented on the State politics of Bihar, having ulterior motive and extraneous design on her mind. She commented that the BJP was willing to start a war, and willing to sacrifice thousands of Army soldiers. She tried to create the Hindu-Muslim angle. Therefore, the petitioner has tried to distort the basic fabric of the country, where Hindus and Muslims live together peacefully,” the government counsel said.

The court stated that, after perusing the allegations in the FIR, and the relevant portion of the case diary, a cognisable offence against the petitioner was evident prima facie, justifying an investigation by the police. The court also asked Ms. Rathore to participate in the investigation, which was pending, and ordered her to appear before the Investigating Officer on September 26.