Mumbai, Oct 27, 2026 12:42 IST
The Bombay High Court on Tuesday quashed a criminal case against a 20-year-old engineering student who had reposted a controversial comment following Operation Sindoor. The court stated that the action was an isolated incident, followed by the voluntary deletion of the post and a clear expression of remorse.
Justice Milind Jadhav remarked that the student deserved another chance, noting that the time she had already spent in custody left a psychological mark. He stated that such an experience for a young student creates a scar that cannot be easily erased. The individual, a student at a private college in Pune, had been arrested on May 9, 2025, over an Instagram repost connected to India-Pakistan tensions following Operation Sindoor.
Justice Jadhav observed that the event appeared to be an isolated act of sharing content that was already accessible on the platform, driven perhaps by youth, and pointed out that she neither authored nor created the original material. While acknowledging that the post was contentious and touched upon religious sentiments within a diverse society, the court emphasized that the mere possibility of causing displeasure or resentment does not automatically warrant criminal prosecution.
The bench noted that criminal law should not be invoked simply because a publication is deemed offensive unless the conduct explicitly violates the law. The student removed the post within two hours of sharing it, before any directive from investigators, and immediately offered a public apology after realizing her error and receiving numerous threats.
Justice Jadhav concluded that there was no intentional effort on the student's part to foster religious hostility. The student had originally reposted material on May 7 from an account named Reformistan, which criticized the government's actions following the Pahalgam terror attack and subsequent precision air strikes by India.
Having previously ordered her immediate release and criticized her initial arrest, the High Court finalized the dismissal of the criminal case. The decision took into account her minor role as a secondary sharer, the quick removal of the post, her apologies, and the period of custody she already endured.