Guwahati, 22 August

Journalist and YouTuber Abhisar Sharma has claimed that the FIR registered by Guwahati Police against him over a video was ''completely baseless'' and he will respond to it legally.

Guwahati police's crime branch on Thursday registered an FIR against Sharma over his video allegedly ridiculing the Assam and Union governments and promoting religious enmity, a senior official said.

''The FIR filed against me by @assampolice is completely baseless. It will be responded to legally!'', Sharma posted on 'X'.

''In my show, I had mentioned the statement of an Assam judge, where he referred to the Assam government giving 3,000 bighas of land to Mahabal Cement and had criticised it'', he said.

Sharma said he had also highlighted Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s ''communal politics with facts — based on his statements''.

The journalist also shared the link to the video on which the FIR has been filed.

The FIR has invoked Sections 152 (sedition), 196 and 197 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS).

This comes close on the heels of two senior journalists — Siddharth Vardarajan and Karan Thapar — being summoned by Guwahati police in connection with cases registered under similar sections — 152, 196, and 197 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) — and asked to appear on 22 August.

According to the complaint, Sharma uploaded a video on YouTube accusing the Assam chief minister of pursuing communal politics.

Sharma also mocked the principle of Ram Rajya and claimed that the government "survives only on Hindu-Muslim polarisation," the complainant said.

Complainant Alok Baruah, a 23-year-old resident of Nayanpur, Ganeshguri, stated that the remarks were made with mala fide intent to disrepute the duly elected Union and Assam governments.

The complainant alleged that the offences committed by Sharma are punishable under Sections 152 (which replaced the repealed sedition law and criminalizes acts that endanger the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India), 196 (offense of promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, caste, or community) and 197 (dealing with with imputations and assertions that are prejudicial to national integration) of the BNS, 2023.