The Madhya Pradesh government is preparing a formal response to the Supreme Court to defend its refusal to sanction the prosecution of cabinet minister Kunwar Vijay Shah. The state cabinet and governor decided not to grant prosecution sanction regarding Shah’s remarks about Army officer Colonel Sofiya Qureshi.
The state’s defence rests on five arguments: that no individual filed a personal complaint against Shah, that he did not name Colonel Qureshi directly, that he apologized three times including in writing, that the episode was human error rather than deliberate intent, and that the remarks did not disturb communal harmony.
The controversy led the Madhya Pradesh High Court to order police to register a case against Shah, and the matter subsequently reached the Supreme Court, which formed a special investigation team and questioned the adequacy of Shah’s apology. The state’s response is expected to be filed in the coming days.