DELHI | 25TH JULY 2025 – In a significant judgment, the Supreme Court on Friday quashed a criminal case filed against right-wing activist Chakravarty Sulibele, who was booked by the Karnataka Police in 2024 for calling All India Congress Committee (AICC) President Mallikarjun Kharge an “Ayogya” during a public address.
The order was passed by a Bench of Justices MM Sundresh and N Kotiswar Singh in the matter titled Mithun Chakravarty Devidas Shet v. State of Karnataka and Anr. (Order copy awaited.)
BACKGROUND OF THE CASE
In January 2024, Sulibele had delivered a speech in Raichur, Karnataka, where he referred to Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge as “Ayogya”, a Kannada word commonly translated as “incompetent”.
Following the speech, Congress Kalaburagi Unit President Jagadev Guttedar Kalagi filed a criminal complaint, alleging that Sulibele’s remarks incited hatred and violence related to Kharge’s caste identity.
Based on the complaint, Karnataka Police registered a criminal case against Sulibele under several serious provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act (SC/ST Act), including:
Section 153A IPC – Promoting enmity between different groups
Section 153B IPC – Imputations prejudicial to national integration
Section 505(2) IPC – Statements promoting enmity, hatred or ill-will
Section 3(2)(v-a) SC/ST Act – Offence involving abuse targeted at a person belonging to SC/ST communities
HIGH COURT & SUPREME COURT PROCEEDINGS
In October 2024, the Karnataka High Court quashed the charges under the SC/ST Act, but permitted the investigation to proceed under the IPC sections.
Dissatisfied with this partial relief, Sulibele approached the Supreme Court, arguing that the High Court had misinterpreted the word “Ayogya”, construing it to mean “Rascal”, which he contended was inaccurate and misleading.
“The word ‘Ayogya’ has several synonyms, with the word closest in meaning being ‘worthless’,” Sulibele argued.
He further submitted that the High Court had not interpreted the word correctly in the context of his speech.
SUPREME COURT VERDICT
The Supreme Court on Friday ruled in Sulibele’s favor and quashed the criminal case entirely, bringing an end to the ongoing criminal proceedings.
The judgment was delivered by Justices MM Sundresh and N Kotiswar Singh, who found merit in the arguments presented by Sulibele.
LEGAL REPRESENTATION
Sulibele was represented by Senior Advocate Aruna Shyam, with the petition filed through Advocates Sudhanshu Prakash and Suyog Herele.
