Delhi HC Denies Anticipatory Bail To Ajeet Bharti In SC/ST Act Case

The Delhi High Court on Thursday rejected Ajeet Bharti’s plea seeking anticipatory bail in a case registered under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

Justice Saurabh Banerjee, while pronouncing the order, observed that the offence under the SC/ST Act was prima facie established against Bharti. The court dismissed the anticipatory bail plea, citing the statutory restrictions under the special law that prevent courts from granting such relief in cases where the provisions of the Act are attracted, Live Law reported.

Bharti had approached the Delhi High Court after a trial court rejected his anticipatory bail application in connection with an FIR alleging caste-based and derogatory remarks against members of the Scheduled Caste community, including Nagina MP Chandra Shekhar Azad and Dr BR Ambedkar.

During the hearing, the High Court had questioned the Delhi Police on why a notice had not been issued to Bharti and whether his custodial interrogation was necessary.

Bharti’s counsel, Advocate Jai Anant Dehadrai, argued that the alleged comments did not amount to an offence under Section 3(1)(r) of the SC/ST Act unless there was an intentional act of insulting or humiliating a person because of their caste identity. He argued that the remarks needed to be considered in the broader context, including alleged comments made against Bharti’s sister on social media.

The Delhi Police opposed the anticipatory bail plea, arguing that the remarks were directed at a particular caste and were made publicly on a social media platform rather than in a private conversation, Live Law reported.

The complainant’s counsel submitted that the statements were derogatory and deliberate, arguing that the remarks referred repeatedly to caste identity and were made when around 23,000 people were allegedly watching the programme online.

The FIR relates to an episode of Bharti’s self-titled programme uploaded on his verified social media account and YouTube channel on August 22. The complaint alleged that the episode contained casteist and humiliating remarks targeting members of the Scheduled Caste community, Chandra Shekhar Azad and Dr BR Ambedkar.

The trial court, while rejecting Bharti’s bail plea, had observed that his remarks regarding the MP’s suitability for marriage with an upper-caste woman prima facie reflected caste-based humiliation. The court noted that references to “Upper” and “Lower” caste hierarchy in the context of marriage indicated a possible intention to insult.

The FIR has been registered under provisions of the SC/ST Act, along with Sections 196(1)(c) and 351(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which relate to aggravated criminal intimidation, and relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act.