The Supreme Court, while hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by the National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) concerning the rise in lynching and mob violence, particularly by 'cow vigilantes', has issued a stern warning to five states — Assam, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Maharashtra, and Bihar.
The court has directed these states to file counter-affidavits within four weeks. Failure to comply will result in the Chief Secretaries of these states appearing before the Court to explain why action should not be taken against them.
A bench of Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan instructed that the counter-affidavits be submitted by the Chief Secretaries. The Registrar (Judicial) has been tasked with communicating the order to the concerned authorities. The matter has been adjourned for four weeks.
In its PIL, NFIW raised concerns over the alarming rise in mob violence, particularly targeting minorities, citing several incidents of lynching allegedly linked to cow vigilantism. The petition specifically mentioned cases in Bihar’s Saran, Maharashtra’s Nashik, and a violent assault in Bhubaneshwar, Odisha. It also highlighted the attack on a bus carrying Hajj pilgrims in Kota, Rajasthan, as well as the assault on a Muslim man by Bajrang Dal members for allegedly transporting cows.
NFIW accused the state machinery of failing to take adequate action to prevent and address lynching and mob violence, despite clear directions from the Supreme Court. The petitioner referred to the Tehseen Poonawalla case of 2018, in which the Court had issued detailed guidelines on the prevention of such violence, asserting that the State has a "sacrosanct duty" to protect citizens from orchestrated lynching and vigilantism.
In its prayer, NFIW sought immediate enforcement of the Tehseen Poonawalla guidelines, urging the Court to direct authorities to take swift action and provide interim compensation to the victims or their families. The organization also linked the rise in violence to false propaganda against minorities, disseminated through public events, social media, news channels, and films.
