The Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed the state of Punjab not to take ‘coercive steps’ against Bollywood actress Raveena Tandon, filmmaker Farah Khan, and comedian Bharti Singh after they filed a petition requesting the FIRs to be quashed. The Fir was filed against them for allegedly hurting religious sentiments during a TV show.
Reportedly, Justice Sudip Ahluwalia has issued a notice to the government of Punjab in this regard, and also decided March 25 as the date for the next hearing.
For the unaware, last year, Raveena and Bharti had arrived on Farah's YouTube show titled The Backbenchers. The episode, which was a Christmas special, created controversy and the trio was accused of hurting religious sentiments soon after. A protest was organized on Christmas Day in Anjala, Amritsar, by the Christian community. Following this, an FIR was registered by the Punjab Police, after they had thoroughly examined the video. The trio has been booked under Section 295-A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Later on, Farah, Bharti, and Raveena posted an apology on social media saying they never intended to insult any religion.
To Err is human.. to Forgive Divine.. Thank you YOUR EMINENCE CARDINAL OSWALD GRACIOUS for meeting us n accepting our heartfelt apologies and putting this unfortunate matter to rest. Frm all of us thank you also @allwynsaldanha for making this happen. pic.twitter.com/bkC8AIDZ2V
— Farah Khan (@TheFarahKhan) December 30, 2019
From the bottom of my heart I would like to say Sorry to my Christian brothers and sisters for hurting their sentiments.Thank you YOUR EMINENCE CARDINAL OSWALD for personally hearing my apology in the voice note(as I’m not in the country)& forgiving me.
Yours Truly,Bharti Singh— Bharti singh (@bharti_lalli) December 30, 2019
Please do watch this link. I haven't said a word that can be interpreted as an insult to any religion. The three of us (Farah Khan, Bharti Singh and I) never intended to offend anyone, but in case we did, my most sincere apologies to those who were hurt. https://t.co/tT2IONqdKI
— Raveena Tandon (@TandonRaveena) December 26, 2019
As per reports, four FIRs were registered against the trio. Three of them of those were in Punjab and another case was lodged in Beed, Maharashtra.
(Source: PTI)
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