Kangana Ranaut booked over social media posts on Gandhi family; FIR registered

BJP MP Kangana Ranaut has been booked by Himachal Pradesh Police over allegedly objectionable social media posts concerning the Gandhi family. According to media reports on November 14, her posts made references to the deaths of former prime ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, and Sanjay Gandhi, as well as Congress leader Sonia Gandhi.

The FIR has been registered under Sections 196, 353 and 356 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, which deal with promoting enmity, statements capable of causing public mischief and defamation, respectively, news agency ANI reported.

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Shimla Superintendent of Police Gaurav Singh confirmed to the media that a complaint had been received and a case registered under the relevant provisions of the law.

The complaint was filed by Shimla resident Captain Atul Sharma through an email to the Himachal Pradesh Director General of Police on November 12. It was also marked to senior officials of the Criminal Investigation Department and the Cyber Crime wing, seeking an investigation into the social media content and its digital origins.

At the centre of the controversy are a series of posts uploaded on November 10 from Ranaut's verified X account, @KanganaTeam. The posts accompanied an archival video featuring members of the Gandhi family and allegedly drew insinuating connections between the deaths of Indira, Rajiv and Sanjay Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi's subsequent political rise.

The complainant took particular exception to the alleged characterisation of Sonia Gandhi as a mysterious foreign national and the manner in which the historical events were juxtaposed. He also flagged remarks concerning Maneka Gandhi's alleged removal from the family residence after Sanjay Gandhi's death.

Sharma argued that the content went beyond the boundaries of political criticism or historical commentary. He maintained that such allegations, when disseminated through the social media account of an elected representative with a substantial following, could potentially undermine public harmony and provoke hostility.

The complaint cited Section 196 of the BNS, which criminalises the promotion of enmity between groups and acts prejudicial to communal harmony. It also invoked Section 353, covering the circulation of statements and information that could cause public mischief, and Section 356, which deals with defamation.

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Sharma further contended that the constitutional guarantee of free speech under Article 19(1)(a) is not absolute and remains subject to reasonable restrictions under the law. He cited Supreme Court rulings, including those in the Lalita Kumari and Amish Devgan cases, while seeking an impartial examination of the allegations.

The complaint has also called for the preservation of electronic evidence by the Cyber Crime wing. This includes metadata, records available with the social media platform, the original archival footage and other digital material linked to the posts, in accordance with the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023.

The complainant has sought a time-bound investigation based on evidence, arguing that the process should not be influenced by the political standing or public profile of the person named in the complaint.

The Mandi MP had not issued an immediate response to the registration of the case.