On Monday, the Supreme Court cemented a turning point in its approach to hate speech by refusing to hear a case against Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. Between 2021 and 2024, the court had taken an active role in policing hate speech. But 2025 saw a change, with the court now hesitant to act on utterances that could incite divisiveness.
The case against the Assam chief minister is related to the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, a socio-religious Muslim organisation, approaching the Supreme Court on February 6, claiming that hate crimes in India had risen by 74% in 2024 and that nearly 98% of these incidents targeted Muslims. The organisation described several recent public statements as “communal, unconstitutional, and hate speech by persons holding high constitutional office”.
Jamait’s writ petition formed part of an petition it moved in 2021, seeking action against the repeated instances of hate speeches against Muslims. The petition has been pending since it was filed.
In its latest plea, the organisation referred to a January 27 speech by the Assam chief minister in which he allegedly spoke about removing “four to five lakh Miya voters” from the electoral rolls. He said that he and his party were “directly against Miyas”, a term the petition described as derogatory...
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