Bhopal: An MP/MLA court in Gwalior has acquitted former Congress minister Raja Pateria of making a controversial statement against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Pateria was arrested in Dec 2022 and spent nearly two and a half months in jail before securing bail. He has called his acquittal a “victory of truth”.
A day prior to his arrest, a video had gone viral, showing him allegedly saying, “If you want to save the Constitution, then be ready to kill Modi.”
It sparked widespread outrage — even PCC chief Kamal Nath criticised it — and led to an FIR against Pateria.He was arrested from his home in Hata.
Pateria faced charges under IPC sections 504 (intentional insult provoking breach of peace), 505 (1)(b) (causing fear and inciting a community to commit offence), 505 (1)(c) (punishment for inciting a community), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 153 (b) (propagation of denial of rights to a certain religious group, caste or community), 451 (house trespass), 115 (abetment of offence punishable with death or life imprisonment) and 117 (abetment of commission of an offence by the public).
His counsel argued in court that the authenticity of the video wasn’t verified, and fake videos are being easily created through AI. Police also submitted that they hadn’t put the video through a forensic check to establish authenticity.
After nearly a year of hearings, the special court gave its verdict on Monday, clearing Pateria of all charges.
