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"Bharat Mata evokes a deeply emotional veneration in a very large number of Hindus....She is to many Hindus a Goddess in her own right," observed Madras High Court while refusing to quash the entire FIR registered against Catholic Priest George Ponniah.

Court decided to let the criminal proceedings go on against Ponniah under section 153A (promoting enmity), 295A (outraging religious feeling) and 505(2) of Indian Penal Code for his alleged derogatory and provocative speech made on 18th July 2021, during a homage meet held after Fr. Stan Swamy's demise.

However, the bench of Justice GR Swaminathan opined that offences under Section 143, 269 and 506(1) of IPC and Section 3 of Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 were not made out against Ponniah.

Opening his judgment by quoting the poem "Bande Mataram" from "Ananda Math" where the nation was equated with Mother Goddess, Justice Swaminathan stated in the 31-page long judgment, 

" 'Bande Mataram' became the warcry of the freedom movement. The nation became equated with the Mother Goddess. In the pictorial representation of Abanindranath Tagore, She is clad in saffron and dressed like a sadhvi, holding a book, sheaves of paddy, a piece of white cloth, and a rudraksha garland (mala) in her four hands."

" She has been installed as a Goddess in the precincts of many a Hindu Temple across the country," said Justice Swaminathan emphasizing the significance of Bharat Mata for Hindus.

Therefore, stressing that Ponniah in his speech had clearly insulted Bharat Mata and targetted Hindus putting them on one side and the Christians and Muslims on the other, court held that his act prima facie attracted the offences u/s 153A, 295A and 505(2) of IPC.

He pointed out, "He stated that Christians wear shoes so that they won't catch scabies. He painted Bhuma Devi and Bharat Mata as sources of infection and filth. Nothing can be more outrageous to feelings of the believing Hindus."

"It was unwarranted and utterly unrelated to the occasion. That is what makes it deliberate and malicious," he conclusively opined.

Furthermore, in probably an unprecedented move, before parting with the judgment, Justice Swaminathan added, "I am certain that on the Judgment Day, God shall admonish the petitioner for having committed an un-Christian act."

Matter in brief

A meeting was organized at Arumanai, a village in western Kanyakumari District, on 18th July, 2021 protesting the continued closure of churches in the District owing to pandemic-induced lockdown. The entire speech was video recorded and widely circulated in the social media.

In the said video, while mocking M.R.Gandhi who was elected as MLA on a BJP ticket, Ponniah could be seen and heard stating, "But we wear shoes. Why? Because the filth of Bharat Mata should not contaminate us. The Tamil Nadu government has given us free footwear. This bhumadevi is dangerous, you could catch scabies from it.”

To be noted, Gandhi is known to walk barefoot out of respect for Mother Earth. 

Ponniah had even laid verbal attacks on the Prime Minister and Home Minister of the country. He had said, "The last days of Modi are going to be pathetic. I give it in writing. If the God we worship is a true living God, the history should see Modi and Amit Shah being eaten by dogs and worms.”

The speech went viral and provoked considerable public outcry. In the aftermath, a case was registered against Ponniah for the offences under Sections 143, 153A, 295A, 505(2), 506(1) and 269 of IPC and Section 3 of the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897. To quash the FIR, the present petition had been filed.

Case Title: Fr.P.George Ponnaiah v. The Inspector of Police,Arumanai Police Station, Kanyakumari District, Kanyakumari and Ors.