Now Reading: Supreme Court grants interim protection from arrest to YouTuber Abhishek Upadhyay
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Supreme Court grants interim protection from arrest to YouTuber Abhishek Upadhyay
Supreme Court grants interim protection from arrest to YouTuber Abhishek Upadhyay
The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted interim protection from arrest to YouTuber Abhishek Upadhyay, who was booked by Ghaziabad police in a road rage FIR. Upadhyay had alleged that the case was a vindictive move because he reported on an alleged misappropriation of donations made to the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple in Ayodhya.
A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant said no coercive action shall be taken against Upadhyay in the FIR registered at Indirapuram police station. The court directed the Uttar Pradesh Police to hand over a copy of the FIR to Upadhyay and asked him to approach the Allahabad High Court for quashing of the case or other relief.
Upadhyay had moved the Supreme Court arguing that the FIR was based on concocted allegations and that the police was forcing shopkeepers to delete CCTV footage of the alleged incident. He had also sought transfer of the investigation to an independent agency.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Times Now reported Upadhyay's claim that the case was an attempt to harass him for his independent journalism, including his fear of harm from 'planted goons of the state machinery'. The Times of India framed him as a 'whistleblower' who had 'exposed embezzlement' of temple donations, giving his allegation of a vindictive police more weight. Both reports are sympathetic to Upadhyay, but neither includes the police's version or the complainant's account. The court's next step will come when the Allahabad High Court hears his petition for quashing the FIR.
Coverage: 2 sources, 2 government-critical
Sources (2): timesnownews.com (government critical), timesofindia.indiatimes.com (government critical)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Methodology and corrections.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
