High Court warns Puneeth Kerehalli against abusing police
Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has warned Puneeth Kerehalli against criticising the government or police on social media while a case is under judicial review. The court also said that making reels, Facebook posts, or issuing abusive statements against police officials during the pendency of a case will not be tolerated.
The observation was made during the hearing of a petition filed by Puneeth Kerehalli seeking to quash a case registered against him at Chennammanakere Achukattu Police Station in connection with an alleged assault on a Myanmar refugee.
During the hearing, Additional State Public Prosecutor B.N. Jagadish informed the court that after a stay was granted on Wednesday in cases registered at the Soladevanahalli Police Station, Puneeth had made certain statements on social media. The prosecutor submitted that in those statements, Puneeth had allegedly used abusive language against the Director General of Police (DGP).
Expressing displeasure, the bench questioned the conduct of Puneeth and addressed his counsel, asking how such actions could continue when the matter was under judicial consideration. The court observed that the case had not been dismissed and only a stay had been granted. It also asked whether Puneeth could not remain calm and act with caution while the matter was pending before the court.
In response, Puneeth’s counsel said that appropriate advice would be given to his client and expressed regret.
The government counsel stated that there was no need for the defence lawyer to apologise. The bench further observed that while Puneeth had raised the issue of illegal immigrants, there was a proper procedure to address such concerns. It said that complaints should be filed with the police, who would take action. If no action is taken, further legal steps can be considered.
The court emphasised that issues should be presented in a lawful manner and warned that such matters should not be used for creating reels or Facebook posts.