The Special Court for MP/MLA cases on Tuesday, June 30, acquitted Goshamahal MLA T Raja Singh in the case registered at Mangalhat police station over his controversial remarks against Prophet Muhammad made in 2022.
Singh had uploaded a YouTube video on the night of August 22, 2022, in which he made derogatory comments about the Prophet and targeted comedian Munawar Faruqui and his mother. He described the video as “comedy,” posted days after the Telangana government permitted Faruqui to perform in Hyderabad — an event Singh had attempted to disrupt.
The video triggered widespread protests across Hyderabad’s Old City, with large crowds gathering at Shalibanda and other areas demanding his arrest. Clashes between protesters and police injured a sub-inspector and at least three others. Shops in several markets remained shut, and effigies of Singh were burnt in protest.
The BJP immediately suspended him from the party. Singh was arrested, briefly released on a technicality, and later detained under the Preventive Detention Act. He spent 77 days in jail before securing bail and faced eight cases registered by Hyderabad and Cyberabad police.
According to Singh’s defence team, the prosecution’s case collapsed on technical and evidentiary grounds. The complainant and a key witness acknowledged that references to the Prophet’s marriage to Aisha appear in hadith collections like Sahih al-Bukhari, and a Quranic verse (Surah Al-Ahzab 33:37) mentions his marriage to Zaynab. The investigating officer reportedly admitted he had not verified the religious sources before filing the charge sheet. The prosecution’s forensic expert also pointed out discontinuities in the video evidence and gaps in its chain of custody.
These shortcomings led to the acquittal, which did not address the lawfulness or derogatory nature of the content itself. Singh, who has faced over 40 similar cases for allegedly hurting Muslim sentiments and has been acquitted in most, welcomed the verdict. He described it as validation of his four-year legal battle, expressed faith in the judiciary, and thanked his supporters and legal team.
This story was originally published in muslimmirror.com.