Bombay HC Quashes FIR Against Student Arrested Over Operation Sindoor Repost

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday quashed an FIR against a 20-year-old engineering student arrested in May last year for reposting social media content about Operation Sindoor, noting her limited role, subsequent apology and time spent in custody.

Justice Milind Jadhav, while allowing her plea, observed that she was “a young engineering student” who had shared material already available online. The court also noted that she deleted the post within two hours.

“The post is undoubtedly contentious, arousing passion and hatred. However, the applicant's (student) role is confined to re-posting the said post which was already available on the social media platform,” the court said, according to news agency PTI.

The messages she reposted purportedly ended with “Pakistan Zindabad”. They were shared during the military confrontation between India and Pakistan following Operation Sindoor, India’s military response to the April 2025 Pahalgam terror attack.

While stressing the need for sensitivity and responsibility when sharing content concerning religious sentiments, the court said the possibility of causing resentment was insufficient on its own to justify prosecution.

“At first glance, it is seen that the contents of the post may have had the potential to create apprehension of disturbance between religious communities, however, the mere possibility that a publication may cause displeasure or resentment cannot, by itself, constitute sufficient ground for criminal prosecution,” the order said.

The student was arrested after the controversy, remanded to judicial custody and denied bail by a Pune magistrate. The High Court subsequently granted her bail on May 25, 2025.

Represented by advocate Farhana Shah, she had also challenged her college’s decision to rusticate her on May 9, 2025, describing the action as “arbitrary and unlawful”.

In her petition, the student maintained that she had reposted another Instagram user’s message without ill intent. She alleged that the ensuing backlash exposed her to “public humiliation, casteist abuse, and was branded with derogatory and communal terms” both on and off campus.

Despite her deleting the post and apologising, the college expelled her, alleging that her actions were “anti-national” and threatened campus harmony, according to the petition.

“Although she deleted the post following the controversy, she was rusticated from the college, which claimed she had anti-national sentiments and posed a risk to the campus community and society,” it stated.