Remarks on Amit Shah, Army: Court issues arrest warrant against Mahua Moitra for skipping summons

Kolkata: A judicial court in West Bengal's Nadia district ordered the immediate issuance of an arrest warrant against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra for ignoring multiple court orders requiring her personal appearance in an alleged hate speech case.

The 3rd Judicial Magistrate at the Krishnanagar court instructed authorities to submit an execution report concerning the warrant by August 28.

Background and legal allegations

The case originates from a complaint accusing the parliamentarian of delivering hate speech and insulting women.
The allegation is that remarks made by her on social media on June 12 against Union Home Minister Amit Shah and the Indian Army were defamatory. Subsequently, following allegations including disrupting communal harmony and hurting Hindu sentiments, a case was registered against Mahua at the Krishnanagar District Court on June 17. Pre-cognisance summons had previously been served to Moitra, requiring her to present herself before the bench.
According to senior police officials from the Krishnanagar police district, the complaint includes charges under several statutory provisions of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS), such as Section 79 for insulting the modesty of a woman, Section 196 for promoting enmity between different groups, Section 299 for outraging religious feelings, Section 351 for criminal intimidation and Section 353(2) for hate speech.
Observations by the court

The judge had ordered Moitra to appear, but noted her absence during proceedings. Displeased with the non-compliance, the magistrate observed, “The series of disobedience of the order of this court .... goes to show the lackadaisical approach of the accused to comply with the court order and accordingly this court is left with no other option but to issue a warrant of arrest against her.”

The court further recorded that legal counsel representing the TMC MP stated she would not appear at any point, leading the magistrate to remark that she showed “No respect for the court of law”.

Moitra's advocate expressed concerns to the court that the MP might face heckling from crowds outside the premises if she attended in person.

(With PTI inputs)