India
Former Congress minister Raja Pateria acquitted of controversial ‘Kill Modi’ charge | – Times of India
Pateria was arrested in December 2022 and spent almost two and a half months in jail before being granted bail. He has called his acquittal a “victory of the truth”.
A day before his arrest, a video went viral in which he reportedly said, “If you want to save the Constitution, be prepared to kill Modi.”
It sparked widespread outrage – even PCC chief Kamal Nath criticized it – and led to an FIR against Pateria. He was arrested from his home in Hata.
Pateria was charged under IPC sections 504 (intentional insult provoking breach of peace), 505 (1) (b) (causing fear and inciting a community to commit offense), 505 (1) (c ) (punishment for incitement to a community), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 153 (b) (propagation of denial of rights to a particular religious group, caste or community), 451 (house trespass), 115 (incitement to an offense punishable punishable by death or life imprisonment) and 117 (incitement to commit a crime by the public).
His counsel argued before the court that the authenticity of the video has not been verified and fake videos can easily be created through AI. Police also indicated that they had not subjected the video to a forensic review to determine its authenticity.
After almost a year of hearings, the special court delivered its verdict on Monday, acquitting Pateria of all charges.
