Today, On 19th May, Operation Sindoor row reaches Supreme Court as Ashoka University professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad challenges his arrest, calling his Facebook remarks “entirely patriotic statements.” SC agrees to urgently hear his plea against the Haryana Police action.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a petition challenging the arrest of Ali Khan Mahmudabad, an associate professor at Ashoka University in Sonipat, related to comments he made about Operation Sindoor.
Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal brought the matter before the bench comprising Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih.
While requesting that the case be scheduled for either Tuesday or Wednesday. He stated,
“He has been arrested for a patriotic statement. Please list it,”
He strongly criticised the arrest and requested urgent hearing of the case, saying that the professor had made only patriotic remarks.
Kapil Sibal told the bench,
“The professor at Ashoka University has been arrested against for an entirely patriotic statements. I want your leadership to hear it immediately.”
The bench, headed by CJI B.R. Gavai, responded to Sibal’s request and said,
“List it day after tomorrow, 22nd May 2025.”
CJI Gavai accepted the request and instructed that the plea be listed. Mahmudabad had been remanded to two days of police custody on Sunday after being arrested by Haryana police in Delhi, following the filing of two separate cases.
Operation Sindoor refers to India’s cross-border military response to Pakistan after the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, which claimed the lives of 26 civilians in India.
In a Facebook post, Mahmudabad stated that with Operation Sindoor, India communicated to Pakistan that, “if you don’t deal with your terrorism problem then we will!”
He criticized those who advocate for war without understanding its consequences, noting,
“The loss of civilian life is tragic on both sides and is the main reason why war should be avoided. There are those who are mindlessly advocating for a war but they have never seen one let alone lived in or visited a conflict zone …”
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He also called on right-wing supporters who praised Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, who led the media briefing on Operation Sindoor, to advocate for victims of mob lynchings and arbitrary property demolitions.
He emphasized that the “optics” of having Colonel Qureshi and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh lead the briefings should translate into real change, warning that otherwise it would be mere hypocrisy.
The first case against Mahmudabad was filed based on a complaint by Yogesh Jatheri, invoking Sections 196 (promoting hatred), 197 (imputations and assertions prejudicial to national integration), 152 (endangering the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India), and 299 (culpable homicide) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
The second FIR stemmed from a complaint by Haryana Women’s Commission Chairperson Renu Bhatia, which included charges under Sections 353 (public mischief), 79 (insult to modesty), and 152 of the BNS.
The State Women’s Commission previously described Mahmudabad’s social media comments as disparaging toward women officers in the Indian Armed Forces and accused him of promoting communal disharmony, issuing a show-cause notice to the professor.
In a statement on X (Twitter), Mahmudabad asserted that the commission had completely misinterpreted his comments and distorted their meaning. He is expected to be presented before the trial court next on May 20 at 2 PM.