Activist Harsh Mander challenged a lower court order refusing FIR registration, arguing that police could act under Zero FIR provisions despite jurisdiction concerns
Guwahati: A Delhi court has issued a notice to Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma while hearing a plea seeking registration of an FIR over his alleged remarks concerning “Miya Muslims” during a public event in Assam.
Additional Sessions Judge Sonu Agnihotri passed the order while hearing a revision petition filed by activist Harsh Mander, who challenged a magistrate court’s earlier refusal to direct police to lodge an FIR against the BJP leader.
In the May 26 order, the sessions court took note of arguments related to the Ministry of Home Affairs’ Standard Operating Procedure on Zero FIR and e-FIR mechanisms.
“The counsel for the petitioner further drew my attention to the standard operating procedure for Zero FIR and E-FIR issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs,” the court observed while issuing notice to the respondents. The matter has now been listed for hearing on July 15, 2026.
According to the petition, the Chief Minister allegedly made remarks during a January 27 programme in Digboi claiming that “four to five lakh Miya voters” would be removed from electoral rolls during Assam’s Special Intensive Revision process.
The plea further alleged that the Chief Minister made comments suggesting that certain groups would be prevented from voting in Assam.
Before the court, Mander’s legal team argued that the earlier order wrongly cited territorial jurisdiction, maintaining that a cognisable offence can be reported at any police station under the Zero FIR framework.
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