The Supreme Court Today (July 21) dismissed Karnataka’s plea against BJP MP Tejasvi Surya and fined the state Rs 25 lakh. The case was linked to a deleted post on a farmer’s suicide, which the court said should not be politicised.
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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India on Monday dismissed the Karnataka state government’s petition that challenged the Karnataka High Court’s decision to cancel a criminal case filed against BJP Member of Parliament Tejasvi Surya.
This case was related to a social media post about a farmer’s suicide, which later turned out to be factually incorrect. Along with dismissing the plea, the top court also imposed a fine of Rs 25 lakh on the state government for wasting the court’s time by bringing a political issue into the judiciary.
The bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) BR Gavai and Justice K Vinodchandran heard the appeal made by the Karnataka government.
The appeal was against the High Court’s earlier decision to quash the FIR (First Information Report) filed against Tejasvi Surya. The FIR accused him of spreading false information related to a farmer’s death in Haveri district, Karnataka.
While rejecting the Karnataka government’s petition, CJI BR Gavai made a strong remark:
“What is this? Don’t politicise the matter. Fight your battles before the electorate. Dismissed with costs”.
This comment made it clear that the court viewed the matter as an unnecessary legal fight driven by politics rather than facts or justice.
The background of the case dates back to November 7, 2024, when Tejasvi Surya shared a news article from Kannada news portals on social media. He claimed that a farmer named Rudrappa Channappa Balikai had died by suicide because the Waqf Board had taken over his land.
But soon after, the post was deleted, as the information turned out to be false.
Later, the Superintendent of Police (SP) of Haveri clarified the facts. He said that Balikai’s suicide on January 6, 2022, had nothing to do with the Waqf Board. Instead, the farmer took the step due to severe financial stress, crop failures, and heavy debts. This explanation showed that the viral post was based on a wrong narrative.
Despite this, a suo motu (self-initiated) case was registered by the police against Tejasvi Surya on the same day – November 7. He was booked under Section 353(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for allegedly making a public statement that could promote enmity, hatred, or ill-will between different groups of people.
But later, the Karnataka High Court quashed this FIR, saying the case had no legal basis. Now, the Supreme Court has supported the High Court’s decision and sent a clear message that political issues should be handled in public debates and elections, not in the courts.
CASE TITLE:
STATE OF KARNATAKA vs L.S. TEJASVI SURYA
Diary No. – 26570/2025.
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