What happened

The Supreme Court agreed to hear journalist Abhishek Upadhyay’s early plea challenging an FIR lodged against him by Ghaziabad Police in connection with an alleged road rage incident.

Background and what the defence argued

Upadhyay’s counsel argued that the FIR includes accusations involving offences under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Upadhyay’s counsel also claimed that the allegations were fabricated and were meant to harass him for his journalistic work.

What changed now

The Supreme Court agreed to hear the plea at an early stage, signalling that the Court will consider the FIR challenge without waiting for the case to pass through later stages of the criminal process.