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The Supreme Court on Tuesday gave anticipatory bail to cartoonist Hemant Malviya who is accused of sharing allegedly objectionable cartoons of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and RSS workers on social media. Noting that he has apologised on his Facebook and Instagram accounts, a bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria gave the police liberty to seek cancellation of his bail in case the cartoonist did not cooperate in the probe. During the hearing, Malviya's counsel Vrinda Grover informed the court that an apology was given and that the petitioner had not yet been summoned. Additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj replied that summoning will take place only after all the evidence is gathered. Malviya was booked by police in Indore in May on a complaint filed by lawyer and RSS worker Vinay Joshi who alleged that he had hurt the religious sentiments of Hindus and disturbed communal harmony by uploading objectionable material on social media. On July 15, a top court bench of Just
The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted protection to cartoonist accused of sharing alleged objectionable cartoons of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and RSS workers on social media. A bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Aravind Kumar said if he shared any more offensive posts on social media, the state was free to take action against him under law. The top court was miffed over the alleged abusive online posts and said, "Log kisi ko bhi, kuch bhi keh dete hain (People say anything to anyone)'." Hemant Malviya challenged in the apex court a Madhya Pradesh High Court order passed on July 3 refusing to grant him anticipatory bail. He was booked by Lasudiya police station in Indore in May on a complaint filed by lawyer and RSS worker Vinay Joshi. Malviya hurt religious sentiments of Hindus and disturbed communal harmony by uploading objectionable material on social media, Joshi alleged. The FIR mentioned various "objectionable" posts, including allegedly inappropriate comments on Lord
Turkish police on Monday detained a cartoonist over a caricature depicting the Prophet Muhammad, an act that also sparked an angry protest outside the Istanbul office of his satirical magazine, officials and reports said. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on X that Leman magazine's cartoonist was taken under custody for questioning. The minister also shared a video of the cartoonist identified only by his initials DP being taken into custody on a stairwell, with hands cuffed behind the back. Earlier, the country's justice minister said an investigation was launched into the magazine, citing possible charges of publicly insulting religious values". A group of youths, reportedly belonging to an Islamist group, hurled stones at Leman's headquarters after it published a cartoon depicting Prophet Muhammad and Prophet Moses exchanging greetings in mid-air as missiles rain down from the sky. Yilmaz Tunc, the justice minister, said that cartoons or drawings depicting the Prophet
The governments support such as providing funding and strengthening distribution infrastructure will help the domestic comics industry achieve healthy growth, ICA said on Thursday. Indian Comics Association (ICA) President Ajitesh Sharma said at present the domestic comic creators face challenges in distribution, financial viability, and cultural acceptance. Initiatives like the formation of this association and Comics Creator Championship (CCC) are aimed at addressing these challenges by providing a formalised structure for creators, fostering collaboration, and promoting innovation. The CCC provides a platform for aspiring and professional creators to showcase their talents. The ICA's efforts aim to nurture new talent and position Indian comics as significant players on the global stage. Sharma said that estimating the exact market size of the industry is challenging due to the unorganized distribution system. Though the absolute numbers have decreased, the readership on digital
The Madras High Court has directed Ananda Vikatan Productions Private Limited to remove the caricature depicting Prime Minister Narendra Modi shackled in chains during a meeting with United States President Donald Trump and inform the same to the union government. On receipt of the information, the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting shall unblock the Ananda Vikatan website, said Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy. The judge passed the interim order on Thursday on a petition filed by Ananda Vikatan Productions Private Limited and Ananda Vikatan Publishers Private Limited, challenging an order of the I&B Ministry, dated February 25, 2025, blocking the website and sought a consequential direction to the Ministry to restore public access to the website. When the case came up for hearing, senior counsel Vijay Narayan, appearing for Ananda Vikatan submitted that the caricature depicting the leaders will not affect the integrity and sovereignty of India. It was freedom of ...