The Gauhati High Court has quashed the criminal proceedings against YouTuber and financial influencer Abhishek Kar in connection with his controversial remarks linking Assam to alleged tantric and black magic practices, holding that the comments did not attract the offences invoked by the police.
A single-judge bench of Justice Pranjal Das, in an order passed on February 9, ruled that even if the allegations made in the FIR were accepted in their entirety, the essential ingredients of the penal provisions cited against Kar were not made out. Accordingly, the court set aside the FIR, charge sheet, and all subsequent proceedings.
The case arose from remarks made by Kar during a YouTube interaction in early 2025, where he claimed that in certain villages in Assam, girls practised black magic and tantric rituals, allegedly capable of transforming people into animals. The comments triggered widespread outrage, following which Assam Police registered a case against him under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Information Technology Act, and the Assam Witch Hunting (Prohibition, Prevention and Protection) Act, 2015.
In its judgment, the High Court observed that Kar’s statements, though controversial and offensive to many, did not amount to promotion of enmity between identifiable groups, nor did they satisfy the legal threshold for obscenity under the IT Act. The court further held that the provisions of the Assam Witch Hunting Act were not attracted, as the remarks did not specifically accuse any individual of being a “witch” in the manner contemplated under the law.
“The continuation of the criminal proceedings would amount to an abuse of the process of law,” the court noted, while allowing Kar’s petition seeking quashing of the case.
Following the controversy last year, Kar had issued a public apology, stating that he had no intention of hurting the sentiments of the people of Assam. The High Court’s ruling is being seen as a significant reiteration of the legal limits on criminal prosecution in cases involving speech, particularly on digital platforms.
The Assam government has not yet reacted to the judgment.
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