Bombay High Court rejected plea to quash FIR against a 19-year-old Pune engineering student over a social media post on Operation Sindoor.
Court ruled that apology, good grades, or being a student cannot stop criminal proceedings.
Case is ongoing, with next hearing scheduled on October 3.
Pune, 22 September 2025: The Bombay High Court has refused to quash the FIR against a 19-year-old Pune engineering student accused of sharing an objectionable post on social media related to Operation Sindoor. The court clarified that neither academic excellence nor an apology can be a reason to cancel criminal proceedings.
The student, in her fourth semester at Sinhagad Academy of Engineering, had reposted an Instagram post from an account named Reformistan on May 7. The post criticized the Indian government and accused it of provoking a war with Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, which was launched in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack.
She deleted the post within two hours after receiving online threats and issued an apology, stating she never intended to create unrest.
Two days later, Kondhwa Police Station registered an FIR against her following a complaint by a police constable. She was arrested from her residence but later secured bail from the High Court. The college initially rusticated her, but another bench restored her admission and allowed her to sit for exams.
During the hearing, her lawyer argued that she had removed the post promptly, showed remorse, had no criminal intent, and had an excellent academic record. However, the bench, led by Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam A. Ankhad, rejected these points.
The court stated that being a student, having good grades, or showing remorse cannot justify striking down criminal proceedings. The judges also added that deleting the post shortly after uploading did not absolve her but instead complicated the matter.
The High Court has directed the Public Prosecutor to submit the case diary in a sealed cover and sought a report from Kondhwa Police Station. The matter is scheduled for further hearing on October 3.
Operation Sindoor, which began on May 7 and continued until May 10, led to the destruction of multiple terror bases in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.