Karnataka High Court Stays Case Against Kalladka Prabhakar Bhat

• Karnataka High Court orders interim stay.
• Case against Kalladka Prabhakar Bhat paused.
• Supreme Court guidelines cited by court.

The Karnataka High Court has granted temporary relief to RSS leader Kalladka Prabhakar Bhat by staying all investigation and legal proceedings linked to an alleged hate speech case.

The order was passed after the court examined a petition seeking to quash the case registered at Puttur Nagar police station in Dakshina Kannada district. The complaint was based on a speech delivered at a public event and later circulated on social media platforms, including YouTube.

Hearing the matter, a single judge bench led by M Nagaprasanna observed that the case primarily concerns a speech shared online. The court noted that recent rulings stress the importance of following due process before taking coercive action against an accused.

The bench referred to the position upheld by the Supreme Court of India, which endorsed guidelines stating that an accused person should not be arrested without being given an opportunity to be heard. The court pointed out that this procedure was not followed in the present case.

Citing the principles laid down in the Satyender Kumar Antil verdict, the High Court ordered that all investigations and related proceedings against Prabhakar Bhat be kept in abeyance for the time being.

The case originates from allegations that a speech made during a Vivekananda Jayanti programme in Puttur contained remarks that promoted hatred against Muslim and Christian communities. Following the circulation of the video online, police registered a case under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita against Bhat, the YouTube channel involved and the event organisers.

With the interim stay now in place, the matter will be reviewed further by the court at a later stage, while no investigative action can proceed meanwhile.