Justice Anant Ramanath Hegde dismissed the petition seeking to quash the chargesheet, observing that the material collected during the investigation did not justify any interference with the proceedings.
The Court went a step further, describing the petition as a “gross abuse of the process of the Court” and directing the accused to pay ₹25,000 to the Mysuru District Legal Services Authority (DLSA).
“Not a single ground is made out to quash the proceedings. On the other hand, the charge sheet materials clearly indicate that the matter has to be tried,” the Court observed.
What triggered the criminal case?
The case concerns Mahesha KC, also known as Mahesh Gowda, who was booked following a complaint by S Vijaykumar, a functionary of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC).
The complaint alleged that Mahesha had published objectionable remarks about Priyank Kharge on Facebook. The post allegedly referred to the Minister’s caste and questioned his respect for Dr BR Ambedkar, stating that Ambedkar was born into the same caste.
Following the complaint, Mysuru South Police investigated the matter and filed a chargesheet against the accused.
The chargesheet invoked Sections 352, 338 and 241 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, along with provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Accused questioned complainant’s authority
Seeking to have the chargesheet quashed, Mahesha argued that the complaint had been filed by someone who was not the alleged victim of the Facebook post.
His counsel contended that the complainant had no right to initiate criminal proceedings in the matter. It was also argued that the contents of the Facebook post did not disclose the commission of any criminal offence.
Opposing the petition, Additional State Public Prosecutor MV Anoop Kumar defended the police investigation and the filing of the chargesheet, maintaining that the allegations warranted criminal proceedings.
Court says allegations must face trial
After examining the submissions and the material placed on record, the High Court found no justification to terminate the case at this stage.
The Court concluded that the allegations and supporting materials required judicial examination during trial, rather than being dismissed through a plea to quash the chargesheet.
With the petition rejected, the criminal proceedings against Mahesha will continue. The accused has also been directed to deposit ₹25,000 with the Mysuru DLSA as costs.