The Supreme Court on Monday put a temporary halt to the FIR proceedings lodged by Maharashtra Police against Professor Sanjay Kumar, noted psephologist and Co-Director of the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS). The case stems from a tweet he posted on the 2024 Maharashtra assembly elections, which he later admitted contained a mistaken analysis.
A bench led by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai, along with Justice NV Anjaria, passed the interim order while hearing Kumar’s plea to quash the FIRs.
During the brief hearing, Kumar’s counsel defended him strongly, describing him as a scholar with “30 years of conscientious service” and an individual of “impeccable integrity.” The lawyer stressed that the post was an honest mistake, for which Kumar had promptly deleted the tweet and issued a public apology.
Chief Justice Gavai noted, “You withdrew also,” to which Kumar’s counsel replied, “I deleted, I apologised publicly, after that, an FIR!” Despite granting a stay on the proceedings, the Chief Justice remarked that “normally we would not have entertained this,” reproted legal news website Live Law.
The controversy began on August 17, when Kumar shared data on his X (formerly Twitter) account regarding voter increases and decreases in certain constituencies. Realising the error, he publicly corrected himself on August 19, clarifying that his earlier post was inaccurate and apologising for the mistake.
Even after his clarification, two FIRs were filed—one in Nashik and another in Nagpur—by officials reporting to the Election Commission of India. The charges were filed under several provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, including Sections 175, 353(1)(b), 212, 340(1)(2), and 356.
In his petition before the Supreme Court, Kumar argued that the FIRs represent an “abuse of State power.” His plea contended that a mistaken tweet cannot amount to forgery or other criminal offences invoked in the case.
“The allegations are baseless. The sections applied are inapplicable. There was no criminal intent—it was an inadvertent error that I immediately corrected with a public apology,” Kumar maintained in his filing. He further stressed that the decision to press criminal charges against a public intellectual for a minor mistake undermines free speech and sets a troubling precedent.
The petition was filed through Advocate-on-Record Sumeer Sodhi.
