The Delhi High Court on September 24 has denied anticipatory bail to YouTuber Ajeet Bharti in a case registered under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, over alleged caste-related remarks concerning Member of Parliament Chandrashekhar Azad.
Justice Saurabh Banerjee held that the material placed before the Court prima facie disclosed offences under Sections 3(1)(r) and 3(1)(s) of the SC/ST Act. In view of the statutory restriction contained in the Act, the Court found the anticipatory-bail plea not maintainable.
Background
The FIR was registered at North Avenue Police Station on August 23, 2026. It followed a complaint concerning remarks allegedly made by Bharti during a video published on his social-media accounts.
The complaint alleged that the video contained caste-related and derogatory remarks concerning Azad and Dr B.R. Ambedkar, besides other objectionable statements. Bharti approached the High Court after the Patiala House Court rejected his anticipatory-bail application on September 7.
During the High Court hearing, Bharti's counsel Jai Anant Dehadrai argued that the remarks had to be considered in their complete context. He submitted that Bharti had responded to comments allegedly made against his family and had not intended to target anyone because of caste.
The High Court considered whether the allegations, at this stage, disclosed the basic ingredients of offences under the SC/ST Act. The Court had earlier examined the disputed video and questioned the police about the investigation and the need for custodial interrogation.
The Court ultimately found that the prima facie case attracted the statutory bar on anticipatory bail.
"The offence under Sections 3(1)(r) and 3(1)(s) of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is prima facie made out and, therefore, the present petition is not maintainable in view of the statutory bar contained under the Act."
Justice Saurabh Banerjee consequently dismissed Bharti's anticipatory-bail plea, holding that the statutory bar applied once the Court found a prima facie case under the SC/ST Act.
A detailed order is awaited.
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