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Supreme Court Extends Bar on Trial in Ashoka Professor Case, Asks Haryana to Weigh Denying Sanction

The bench gave the state six weeks to decide on prosecution sanction, signaling possible closure conditioned on future responsible conduct.

Overview

  • The restraint on the trial court taking cognisance of the Haryana SIT chargesheet will remain in force until the next hearing in six weeks.
  • Additional Solicitor General S. V. Raju said a chargesheet was filed in August 2025 but the Haryana government has not granted the required sanction to prosecute.
  • Chief Justice Surya Kant floated a "one-time magnanimity" approach in which the state could decline sanction to close the case, coupled with an expectation that Ali Khan Mahmudabad act responsibly.
  • The Supreme Court has earlier confined the investigation to two FIRs, criticized overreach, and directed a three-member SIT to assess the wording of the posts after granting interim bail in May 2025.
  • The FIRs, filed by Rai police on complaints including from Haryana State Commission for Women chair Renu Bhatia, cite BNS provisions on sovereignty, public mischief, communal enmity, and insult to a woman's modesty.