The Allahabad High Court has granted bail to three accused arrested over the alleged filming and circulation of a controversial video linked to the River Ganga in Varanasi, observing that the applicants had expressed “genuine remorse” and tendered an unconditional apology respecting Hindu faith and “Maa Ganga.”
While allowing the bail applications, the Court noted that the apology appearing in the supplementary affidavits appeared to be heartfelt and said the applicants had assured the Court that they would not indulge in such activities in future.
The Court recorded the apology in Hindi which is translated in English as follows,
“The applicant deeply respects Maa Ganga and the Hindu religion. He seeks folded-hand forgiveness from the entire Hindu community and all other believers whose faith is centred around Maa Ganga and assures the Court and members of the Hindu community that he shall never participate in such activities in future and will continue to honour Maa Ganga throughout his life.”
The order was passed by Single Bench of Justice Rajiv Lochan Shukla on a batch of criminal miscellaneous bail applications moved by Danish Saifi, Noor Islam and Amir Kaifi.
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The applicants had sought release on bail in connection with Case Crime No. 65 of 2026 registered at Kotwali Police Station, district Varanasi.
According to the prosecution, the FIR was lodged under Sections 298, 299, 196(1)(b), 279, 223(b) and 308(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with Section 67 of the Information Technology Act. The State alleged that the accused had desecrated the River Ganga and attempted to disturb communal harmony by uploading a video on Instagram through the account of a co-accused.
The prosecution further claimed that the uploading of the video formed part of a “larger conspiracy to disturb public harmony” and informed the Court that the investigation was underway to ascertain who had funded the alleged Iftar gathering and facilitated circulation of the video.
Counsel appearing for the applicants, however, argued that the accused had been falsely implicated and never intended to hurt the religious sentiments of the Hindu community.
Read also: https://practicinglawyer.in/gujarat-hc-rti-information-dispute-dismissed/
It was submitted that the applicants had been in custody since March 17, 2026, and were no longer required for custodial interrogation. The defense also stressed that except for Section 308(5) BNS, none of the invoked offences carried punishment exceeding seven years.
The applicants further pointed out that allegations of extortion were introduced belatedly without any explanation for the delay. It was also highlighted that the accused had no criminal antecedents and had undertaken not to indulge in any activity prejudicial to communal harmony in future.
A significant factor that weighed with the Court was parity with similarly placed co-accused who had already been enlarged on bail by coordinate Benches earlier this month.
The High Court noted that while granting bail to the co-accused, it had already taken into account the detention period, absence of past criminal history and the apology expressed before the Court.
Referring specifically to the affidavits filed by the present applicants, the Court observed that the apology and submissions made on their behalf reflected “genuine remorse for the action attributed to the applicants.”
Allowing all three bail applications, the Court directed that the accused be released on furnishing personal bonds and two reliable sureties each to the satisfaction of the trial court.
The Bench imposed conditions restraining them from tampering with evidence, intimidating witnesses or indulging in criminal activity, and directed them to cooperate with the trial proceedings.
The Court clarified that its observations were confined solely to adjudication of the bail pleas and would not influence the merits of the pending criminal case.
Case: Danish Saifi and Others vs State of U.P.
Case No: Criminal Misc. Bail Application No. – 12859 of 2026, 13866 of 2026 & 12885 of 2026
Date of Order: 18.05.2026
Status: Allowed
