SC grants interim protection to journalist Abhisar Sharma in Assam FIR case

The Supreme Court on August 28 granted four weeks’ interim protection from arrest to journalist Abhisar Sharma in connection with an FIR filed against him in Assam over a video post allegedly critical of the state government’s policies.

A bench of Justices M M Sundresh and N Kotiswar Singh directed Sharma to move the Gauhati High Court for the quashing of the FIR.

At the same time, the apex court issued notice to the Centre on Sharma’s plea challenging the constitutional validity of Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which pertains to acts endangering the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India.

The FIR was lodged following a complaint by a private individual over a video posted on Sharma’s YouTube channel, in which he questioned the decision to allot 3,000 bighas of tribal land to a private entity.