'Action Violates Legal Process, BJP Fearful of Critical Opinion': Opposition on Ashoka Prof's Arrest
Opposition parties questioned how 'hate mongers' like Madhya Pradesh minister Vijay Shah can roam free while those calling for peace are arrested.
19/May/2025
New Delhi: The action against Ashoka University professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad who was arrested on Sunday (May 18) under charges that point to sedition and for hurting religious sentiments for his comments on India’s Operation Sindoor against Pakistan has been criticised by opposition parties who said that the move shows how “fearful” the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is of critique.
The opposition also said that in prime minister Narendra Modi’s India, “hate mongers” like Madhya Pradesh minister Vijay Shah can roam free while those calling for peace are arrested.
“The arrest of Ashoka University professor, Ali Khan Mahmudabad shows how fearful the BJP is of any opinion, disliked by them,” said Congress president Malliakrjun Kharge in a statement on Monday (May 19).
‘Does not mean that we cannot question the Government’
Kharge pointed to the vicious trolling of Pahalgam terror attack victim Lieutenant Vinay Narwal’s wife Himanshi who had called for peace and condemned the hate campaign against Muslims and Kashmiris, the social media trolling of Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Madhya Pradesh BJP leader and cabinet minister Kunwar Vijay Shah who called Colonel Sofiya Qureshi (who had conducted press briefings during Operation Sindoor) “sister of terrorists” and said that Mahmudabad’s arrest “follows a chain reaction”.
“Instead of sacking their own Madhya Pradesh’s Deputy CM & Minister, who made disgusting statements against our valiant Armed Forces, BJP-RSS is hellbent in casting a narrative that anybody who represents pluralism, questions the government or simply performs his professional duty in the service of the nation, is a threat to its existence,” said Kharge.
“Supporting the Armed Forces and the government, when National Interest reigns supreme, does not mean that we cannot question the Government.”
On Sunday, two FIRs were lodged against Mahmudabad, one on the complaint of a BJP office-bearer and the other on the complaint of the Haryana State Commission for Women, days after its chairperson had summoned the professor over his social media posts against warmongering following India’s Operation Sindoor against Pakistan. The police confirmed his arrest in a statement posted on X.
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Manoj Kumar Jha said on Sunday that “critiquing the government does not amount to critiquing the nation.”
“Let us repeat hundred times and if required keep doing it continuously that critiquing the government does not amount to critiquing the nation – and this is a crucial distinction in any healthy democracy or society. A government (however powerful it might appear!) is temporary and made up of elected or appointed officials whose duty is to serve the people,” he said.
“Critiquing government policies, decisions, or leaders is often an act of patriotism, motivated by the desire to improve the nation and uphold its values. Loving your country sometimes means holding its leaders to a higher standard – because the nation deserves better. Therefore, to ask questions to those in power is not to abandon the land we love, but to guard it more fiercely – for a nation’s soul lives not in silence, but in the courage to speak.”
‘While hate mongers like Vijay Shah roam free, those calling for justice and peace are targeted’
Mahmudabad’s arrest comes as multi-party delegations will be sent by the union government to different countries to “project India’s national consensus and resolute approach to combating terrorism in all forms and manifestations”.
All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) MP Asaduddin Owaisi who will be a part of these delegations called Mahmudabad’s arrest “utterly condemnable” and said that it “violates legal process”.
“It targets an individual for his opinions; his post wasn’t anti-national or misogynistic. A mere complaint by a BJP worker made Haryana police take action,” he said.
In a statement the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M))on Sunday also condemned Mahmudabad’s arrest and pointed to Shah roaming free even as the Ashoka University professor is arrested.
“While hate mongers like Vijay Shah roam free, those calling for justice and peace are targeted in Modi’s India,” the party said.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra said that if an eminent scholar like Mahmudabad can be arrested “on Mickey Mouse charges & jailed then it is only because of his name.”
Moitra also reshared Mahumadabad’s post and said that nothing in it “is remotely offensive, let alone seditious.”
Ashoka Prof Arrested For ‘Endangering Sovereignty’ Over Post Criticising Jingoism, Sent to Custody Till May 20
Omar Rashid
18/May/2025
On May 19, the Supreme Court agreed to urgently list Mahmudabad's plea challenging his arrest. The matter will be heard today or on May 20.
Ali Khan Mahmudabad. Photo: Official Facebook account.
New Delhi: Haryana police on Sunday (May 18) arrested Ashoka University professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad under charges that point to sedition and for hurting religious sentiments complaint for his comments on India’s Operation Sindoor against Pakistan.
Two FIRs were lodged against Mahmudabad, one on the complaint of a Bharatiya Janata Party office-bearer and the other on the complaint of the Haryana State Commission for Women days after its chairperson had summoned the professor over his social media posts against warmongering following India’s Operation Sindoor against Pakistan. The police confirmed his arrest in a statement posted on X.
The associate professor who teaches political science was picked up from his residence in Delhi early on Sunday morning, his family said.
Around 10-15 personnel from the Haryana police barged into the apartment around 6:30 am on Sunday and after producing him at the local police station took him to Sonipat, said his family.
Police said that the FIR lodged by the BJP leader was based on what professor Mahmudabad allegedly told him in person. The FIR says that his feelings were hurt by Mahmudabad.
The second FIR was based on a complaint by HSCW Renu Bhatia who accused Mahmudabad of contempt for not appearing before her after she on May 12 summoned him for his Facebook posts.
Mahmudabad’s lawyers had appeared before the Commission on his behalf on May 14.
On May 19, the Supreme Court agreed to urgently list Mahmudabad’s plea challenging his arrest. The matter will be heard today or on May 20.
‘Endangering India’s sovereignty’
Mahmudabad was booked under the serious charge of ‘acts that endanger India’s sovereignty, unity, and integrity’ under Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita’s Section 152. He was also charged with imputations and assertions prejudicial to national integration; deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class of citizens; and promote or attempt to promote disharmony or feelings of enmity, hatred, or ill-will between different groups based on religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, caste, or community.
The FIR was lodged on the complaint of a BJP leader, Yogesh Jatheri, a village sarpanch from Sonipat and the general secretary of the BJP’s young wing in Haryana.
The second FIR was lodged under sections 353, 79, 152 and 169 (1) of the BNS on the complaint of Haryana State Commission for women chairperson Renu Bhatia, said DCP Sonipat (crime) Narendra Singh.
The police will approach the court for a remand of five days, he added.
Late on Sunday, Mahmudabad’s family said he has been sent to police remand till Tuesday, May 20 to help police “recover laptop bank statement from his Delhi or UP house.”
The criminal action against Mahmudabad came days after the Haryana State Commission for Women chairperson Renu Bhatia served him a notice accusing him of disparaging women in uniform, especially Colonel Sofiya Qureshi and wing commander Vyomika Singh, and undermining their role as professional officers in the Indian armed forces.
Bhatia took note of two recent Facebook posts by Mahmubabad following Operation Sindoor, and accused him of misrepresenting facts with repeated references to “genocide,” “dehumanisation” and “hypocrisy,” “thereby attributing malicious communal intent to the government and Indian armed forces, as well as inciting communal distress and attempting to disturb internal peace.”
In two separate Facebook posts, Mahmudabad had called out the “blind bloodlust for war,” raised concerns over the human cost of armed conflict and stressed that the “optics of two women soldiers presenting their findings” after India’s military action was important but “optics must translate to reality on the ground otherwise it’s just hypocrisy.”
Also read: ‘Inverted the Meaning, Invented an Issue’: Ashoka Professor on Women’s Panel’s Reaction to Army Post
‘Vilification of national military’
After the HSCW on May 12 summoned him for his posts, Mahmudabad said that his remarks had been “completely misunderstood.” In a statement, he said that he had exercised his fundamental right to freedom of thought and speech in order to “promote peace and harmony and to applaud the Indian armed forces for their resolute action, while criticising those who preach hatred and seek to destabilise India.”
In his complaint against Mahmudabad, BJP leader Jatheri mentioned Mahmudabad’s Facebook posts on Colonel Qureshi and Wing Commander Singh. He accused Mahmubabad of working to incite people against the country at a sensitive time. “Instead of uniting people to fight against external forces at such a sensitive time, this professor kept inciting sentiments and working to benefit external or foreign forces in the name of religion,” said the FIR.
Jatheri made specific references to Mahmudabad’s post about Colonel Qureshi briefing the media after Operation Sindoor and his comments on how Muslims were being persecuted on the ground.
The HSCW had issued him a suo motu notice saying that his conduct, remarks, representations and statements had raised serious concerns pertaining to the safety, security and dignity of women.
The notice also said that Mahmudabad’s posts raised concerns about attempts at “vilification of national military actions taken and the role of women officers in response to cross-border terrorism,” potential incitement to public unrest, especially targeting communal harmony and undermining national integrity, and violation of dignity and outraging woman’s modesty.
‘Optics’
Responding to the notice, Mahmudabad on May 14 said that the Commission failed to highlight how his posts were contrary to the rights of or laws for women. “I am surprised that the Women’s Commission, while overreaching its jurisdiction, has misread and misunderstood my posts to such an extent that they have inverted their meaning. This is a new form of censorship and harassment, which invents issues where there are none,” he said.
In a recent post on Facebook, Mahmudabad had said that he was happy to see many right-wing commentators applauding Colonel Sofiya Qureshi but “perhaps they could also equally loudly demand that the victims of mob lynchings, arbitrary bulldozing and others who are victims of the BJP’s hate mongering be protected as Indian citizens.” He said that the “optics of two women soldiers presenting their findings” was important but “optics must translate to reality on the ground otherwise it’s just hypocrisy.”
Mahmudabad said that the press conference by Colonel Qureshi and Wing Commander Singh, updating the country on Operation Sindoor against Pakistan, was “just a fleeting glimpse – an illusion and allusion perhaps – to an India that defied the logic on which Pakistan was built.”
“As I said, the grassroots reality that common Muslims face is different from what the government tried to show but at the same time the press conference shows that an India, united in its diversity, is not completely dead as an idea,” said the professor.
Mahmudabad pointed out that contrary to the allegations, his post had in fact appreciated that the armed forces chose Qureshi and Singh for the press conference to highlight the fact that “the dream of the founders of our Republic, of an India which is united in its diversity, is still very much alive.” There was nothing remotely misogynistic about his comments that could be construed as anti-women, he added.
“I even applauded members of the right wing who supported Colonel Qureshi and invited them to have the same attitude for common Indian Muslims who face demonisation and persecution on a daily basis. If anything, my entire comments were about safeguarding the lives of both citizens and soldiers,” he said.
The Faculty Association of Ashoka University strongly condemns the arrest of Professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad, Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Political Science, on 18 May 2025, on groundless and untenable charges. We condemn the calculated harassment to which Professor Mahmudabad has been subjected: after being arrested early in the morning from his home in New Delhi, he was taken to Sonipat, not allowed access to necessary medication, and driven around for hours without any communication about his whereabouts.
Ashoka faculty association extends support to Mahmudabad
In a statement released on Sunday, the faculty association of Ashoka University demanded “his immediate and unconditional release”. The association said that Mahmudabad is a “a deeply responsible citizen, who brings all his energy and learning to promoting communal harmony and the greater good.”
“The Faculty Association stands in full support of our colleague: an invaluable member of the university community, a beloved and respected teacher and friend to his students, and a deeply responsible citizen, who brings all his energy and learning to promoting communal harmony and the greater good.
Professor Mahmudabad is well-versed in diverse literary and linguistic traditions and is a widely acclaimed expert and scholar of history and political science in South Asia and beyond. In all of his writing, both for academic and wider public fora, he has emphasized the importance of justice, pluralism, and solidarity, and has always advocated a profound respect for Constitutional values and morality.
Professor Mahmudabad’s students and colleagues have learnt from him what it truly means to be a good citizen-scholar: rational, critical, yet deeply respectful and generous in their engagement with the world around them. All members of the Ashoka community can attest to his personal kindness, his concern for others, and his tireless commitment to sharing his knowledge and resources.
We demand the immediate and unconditional release of Professor Mahmudabad and the dropping of all charges against him.”
This report was been updated with news on his remand, a second FIR and the Supreme Court’s decision to urgently list his plea.
Omar Rashid
18/May/2025
On May 19, the Supreme Court agreed to urgently list Mahmudabad's plea challenging his arrest. The matter will be heard today or on May 20.
Ali Khan Mahmudabad. Photo: Official Facebook account.
New Delhi: Haryana police on Sunday (May 18) arrested Ashoka University professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad under charges that point to sedition and for hurting religious sentiments complaint for his comments on India’s Operation Sindoor against Pakistan.
Two FIRs were lodged against Mahmudabad, one on the complaint of a Bharatiya Janata Party office-bearer and the other on the complaint of the Haryana State Commission for Women days after its chairperson had summoned the professor over his social media posts against warmongering following India’s Operation Sindoor against Pakistan. The police confirmed his arrest in a statement posted on X.
The associate professor who teaches political science was picked up from his residence in Delhi early on Sunday morning, his family said.
Around 10-15 personnel from the Haryana police barged into the apartment around 6:30 am on Sunday and after producing him at the local police station took him to Sonipat, said his family.
Police said that the FIR lodged by the BJP leader was based on what professor Mahmudabad allegedly told him in person. The FIR says that his feelings were hurt by Mahmudabad.
The second FIR was based on a complaint by HSCW Renu Bhatia who accused Mahmudabad of contempt for not appearing before her after she on May 12 summoned him for his Facebook posts.
Mahmudabad’s lawyers had appeared before the Commission on his behalf on May 14.
On May 19, the Supreme Court agreed to urgently list Mahmudabad’s plea challenging his arrest. The matter will be heard today or on May 20.
‘Endangering India’s sovereignty’
Mahmudabad was booked under the serious charge of ‘acts that endanger India’s sovereignty, unity, and integrity’ under Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita’s Section 152. He was also charged with imputations and assertions prejudicial to national integration; deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class of citizens; and promote or attempt to promote disharmony or feelings of enmity, hatred, or ill-will between different groups based on religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, caste, or community.
The FIR was lodged on the complaint of a BJP leader, Yogesh Jatheri, a village sarpanch from Sonipat and the general secretary of the BJP’s young wing in Haryana.
The second FIR was lodged under sections 353, 79, 152 and 169 (1) of the BNS on the complaint of Haryana State Commission for women chairperson Renu Bhatia, said DCP Sonipat (crime) Narendra Singh.
The police will approach the court for a remand of five days, he added.
Late on Sunday, Mahmudabad’s family said he has been sent to police remand till Tuesday, May 20 to help police “recover laptop bank statement from his Delhi or UP house.”
The criminal action against Mahmudabad came days after the Haryana State Commission for Women chairperson Renu Bhatia served him a notice accusing him of disparaging women in uniform, especially Colonel Sofiya Qureshi and wing commander Vyomika Singh, and undermining their role as professional officers in the Indian armed forces.
Bhatia took note of two recent Facebook posts by Mahmubabad following Operation Sindoor, and accused him of misrepresenting facts with repeated references to “genocide,” “dehumanisation” and “hypocrisy,” “thereby attributing malicious communal intent to the government and Indian armed forces, as well as inciting communal distress and attempting to disturb internal peace.”
In two separate Facebook posts, Mahmudabad had called out the “blind bloodlust for war,” raised concerns over the human cost of armed conflict and stressed that the “optics of two women soldiers presenting their findings” after India’s military action was important but “optics must translate to reality on the ground otherwise it’s just hypocrisy.”
Also read: ‘Inverted the Meaning, Invented an Issue’: Ashoka Professor on Women’s Panel’s Reaction to Army Post
‘Vilification of national military’
After the HSCW on May 12 summoned him for his posts, Mahmudabad said that his remarks had been “completely misunderstood.” In a statement, he said that he had exercised his fundamental right to freedom of thought and speech in order to “promote peace and harmony and to applaud the Indian armed forces for their resolute action, while criticising those who preach hatred and seek to destabilise India.”
In his complaint against Mahmudabad, BJP leader Jatheri mentioned Mahmudabad’s Facebook posts on Colonel Qureshi and Wing Commander Singh. He accused Mahmubabad of working to incite people against the country at a sensitive time. “Instead of uniting people to fight against external forces at such a sensitive time, this professor kept inciting sentiments and working to benefit external or foreign forces in the name of religion,” said the FIR.
Jatheri made specific references to Mahmudabad’s post about Colonel Qureshi briefing the media after Operation Sindoor and his comments on how Muslims were being persecuted on the ground.
The HSCW had issued him a suo motu notice saying that his conduct, remarks, representations and statements had raised serious concerns pertaining to the safety, security and dignity of women.
The notice also said that Mahmudabad’s posts raised concerns about attempts at “vilification of national military actions taken and the role of women officers in response to cross-border terrorism,” potential incitement to public unrest, especially targeting communal harmony and undermining national integrity, and violation of dignity and outraging woman’s modesty.
‘Optics’
Responding to the notice, Mahmudabad on May 14 said that the Commission failed to highlight how his posts were contrary to the rights of or laws for women. “I am surprised that the Women’s Commission, while overreaching its jurisdiction, has misread and misunderstood my posts to such an extent that they have inverted their meaning. This is a new form of censorship and harassment, which invents issues where there are none,” he said.
In a recent post on Facebook, Mahmudabad had said that he was happy to see many right-wing commentators applauding Colonel Sofiya Qureshi but “perhaps they could also equally loudly demand that the victims of mob lynchings, arbitrary bulldozing and others who are victims of the BJP’s hate mongering be protected as Indian citizens.” He said that the “optics of two women soldiers presenting their findings” was important but “optics must translate to reality on the ground otherwise it’s just hypocrisy.”
Mahmudabad said that the press conference by Colonel Qureshi and Wing Commander Singh, updating the country on Operation Sindoor against Pakistan, was “just a fleeting glimpse – an illusion and allusion perhaps – to an India that defied the logic on which Pakistan was built.”
“As I said, the grassroots reality that common Muslims face is different from what the government tried to show but at the same time the press conference shows that an India, united in its diversity, is not completely dead as an idea,” said the professor.
Mahmudabad pointed out that contrary to the allegations, his post had in fact appreciated that the armed forces chose Qureshi and Singh for the press conference to highlight the fact that “the dream of the founders of our Republic, of an India which is united in its diversity, is still very much alive.” There was nothing remotely misogynistic about his comments that could be construed as anti-women, he added.
“I even applauded members of the right wing who supported Colonel Qureshi and invited them to have the same attitude for common Indian Muslims who face demonisation and persecution on a daily basis. If anything, my entire comments were about safeguarding the lives of both citizens and soldiers,” he said.
The Faculty Association of Ashoka University strongly condemns the arrest of Professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad, Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Political Science, on 18 May 2025, on groundless and untenable charges. We condemn the calculated harassment to which Professor Mahmudabad has been subjected: after being arrested early in the morning from his home in New Delhi, he was taken to Sonipat, not allowed access to necessary medication, and driven around for hours without any communication about his whereabouts.
Ashoka faculty association extends support to Mahmudabad
In a statement released on Sunday, the faculty association of Ashoka University demanded “his immediate and unconditional release”. The association said that Mahmudabad is a “a deeply responsible citizen, who brings all his energy and learning to promoting communal harmony and the greater good.”
“The Faculty Association stands in full support of our colleague: an invaluable member of the university community, a beloved and respected teacher and friend to his students, and a deeply responsible citizen, who brings all his energy and learning to promoting communal harmony and the greater good.
Professor Mahmudabad is well-versed in diverse literary and linguistic traditions and is a widely acclaimed expert and scholar of history and political science in South Asia and beyond. In all of his writing, both for academic and wider public fora, he has emphasized the importance of justice, pluralism, and solidarity, and has always advocated a profound respect for Constitutional values and morality.
Professor Mahmudabad’s students and colleagues have learnt from him what it truly means to be a good citizen-scholar: rational, critical, yet deeply respectful and generous in their engagement with the world around them. All members of the Ashoka community can attest to his personal kindness, his concern for others, and his tireless commitment to sharing his knowledge and resources.
We demand the immediate and unconditional release of Professor Mahmudabad and the dropping of all charges against him.”
This report was been updated with news on his remand, a second FIR and the Supreme Court’s decision to urgently list his plea.
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