Allahabad HC gags reporting on Yogi’s hate speech: Here are 4 times he spewed venom

What would a state government want to do with a case in which the prime accused is the chief minister? If you are thinking on the lines of “getting the case dropped”, the Uttar Pradesh government appears to be trying hard to prove you right.

In January 2007, Raj Kumar Agrahari's killing had triggered a fortnight of communal clashes in Gorakhpur. The Allahabad High Court is presently hearing an appeal for prosecuting UP CM Yogi Adityanath in connection with those clashes. Adityanath allegedly gave hate speeches just a day after Agrahari's death, inciting people to avenge the killing.

In May 2017, Adityanath's government informed the High Court that it had refused sanction for prosecuting him. The refusal also pertained to appeal for prosecution against four other accused named in the FIR, including BJP MLA from Gorakhpur Radhamohan Das Agarwal and BJP Rajya Sabha MP Shiv Pratap Shukla.

The refusal was eventually challenged and the court is now hearing the application. The state government meanwhile is making efforts to the shield the case from public attention. It had appealed to the High Court to bar the media from reporting on proceedings of the case and the court has recently agreed to the government's plea.

A two-judge bench of the court gave an order on November 7, barring publishing of media reports on the proceedings until the judgment is delivered. In its appeal, the state government had pointed out to the court that observations were being “reported out of context and very often misquoted”.

“Earlier also, this fact was brought to our notice when we orally directed not to publish any misleading reports”, the order also said.

It is unfortunate that media coverage of the proceedings have been blocked, given the nature of the case. Adityanath is known for his fiery speeches in support of the Hindutva agenda. He is also well-known for his support for the 'ghar-wapsi' programme of forced conversions of Muslims to Hinduism.

He is known to have been present on platforms from where diabolical ideas like raping dead Muslim women have been proposed. The court's gag order has given an opportunity to revisit some of Adityanath's speeches, recordings of which can be easily seen on YouTube. Here are some of them: