The Bombay High Court on Thursday annulled the death sentence of Social Democratic Party of India Secretary General Saeed Ahmed Abdul Wahid Chaudhry, questioning how sloganeering against the government could justify such an action.
During the hearing, Justice Madhav Jamdar sharply questioned the Mumbai Police’s decision to expel Chaudhary, a former Lok Sabha candidate, from Mumbai and adjoining areas for one year. The judge specifically asked why slogans such as “BJP government Murdabad” and “Amit Shah Murdabad” were treated as grounds for extermination, Bar and Bench reported.
Judge Jamdar asked the government: “How can such slogans become a reason for genocide?”
The court was considering an order banning Chaudhary from entering the city and neighboring areas for a year, as HT reported earlier.
“The washing machine… the horse trade.”
The single-judge bench observed that democratic dissent cannot be curbed through such measures, and criticized the police for initiating action against Chaudhary.
“Citizens cannot be made slaves of the central government. The police are not servants of the chief minister or the chief minister. They are public servants,” Justice Jamdar noted.
The Supreme Court also asked: “Are these cases registered against him because he belongs to another party? Let him also change his stand and all these cases will end. Horse trading is happening all over the country.”
He also compared to recent protests across the country. Referring to the demonstrations over issues like leakage of NEET papers, the bench asked: “Will you issue such orders against them as well?”
Justice Jamdar noted that the petitioner could simply switch his political positions to clear the FIRs against him through the government’s “washing machine”.
HC describes procedure as ‘distorted’
While quashing the order, the court held that the action taken against Chaudhry was “wrong” and violated Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution.
“Under Articles 14 and 21, citizens not only have the right to express their opinions but also have the right to live in dignity,” the court observed.
The court concluded that the deportation order could not be upheld and annulled it.
What was the issue about?
Chaudhry went to the Supreme Court on March 27 this year, challenging the deportation order issued last year on December 3.
According to his petition, a senior police inspector of RCF police station filed a motion for dismissal against him and others on October 20, 2025. Based on the motion, the Deputy Commissioner of Police issued an order directing Chaudhary to leave Mumbai within two days and stay out of the city and adjoining areas for 12 months.
The proceedings against him stem from his involvement in organizing marches, dharanas and demonstrations against various policies of the Union government since 2019. These included protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the Waqf (Amendment) Bill.
The deportation order had alleged that Chaudhry engaged in strong anti-government slogans and cited several criminal cases registered against him in connection with those protests.
(With inputs from Karuna Nidhi)
