The Madhya Pradesh government is preparing to defend before the Supreme Court its decision not to grant sanction for the prosecution of senior cabinet minister Kunwar Vijay Shah over his controversial remarks concerning Army officer Colonel Sofiya Qureshi.
One of the arguments is the Vijay Shah did not mention Colonel Sofiya Qureshi by name in his statement. The government has further described the episode as a human error.
At the centre of the reply is a five-point defence explaining why the Cabinet believes there are not sufficient grounds to prosecute Shah. The government’s first argument is that no individual came forward to lodge a complaint against Vijay Shah after the controversial statement. It is expected to tell the Supreme Court that despite the political and public controversy surrounding the remarks, there was no private complainant seeking criminal action against the minister. The second argument is that Shah did not mention Colonel Sofiya Qureshi by name in his statement. The government also maintains that the minister did not intend to insult Colonel Qureshi or any other individual through his remarks. The state is also relying heavily on Shah’s apologies. The Cabinet has taken the position that these repeated apologies should be considered while deciding whether criminal prosecution is warranted. Another key part of the government’s defence is its contention that Shah’s statement did not disturb communal harmony. The state is expected to argue that there was neither any actual disruption of communal peace nor any intention on the minister’s part to create such a disturbance. The recommendation was subsequently sent to Governor Mangubhai Patel, who approved the Cabinet’s decision.
The Cabinet headed by Chief Minister Mohan Yadav had on August 25 decided against granting sanction to prosecute Shah.
Shah apologised three times and also expressed regret in writing, according to the government’s proposed response.
The state government’s response is expected to be filed before the Supreme Court in the coming days after scrutiny by legal experts, the Chief Secretary and the Chief Minister’s Office. The government will now place these arguments before the Supreme Court.
