The Punjab and Haryana High Court Thursday refused to interfere in the case against popular singer-rapper Honey Singh registered by Punjab Police. It also dismissed a PIL (public interest litigation) filed before it in January by HELP (Human Empowerment League Punjab), a Punjab-based NGO regarding vulgarity in his songs and a few other singers.
The rapper had sought the intervention of the high court regarding the FIR (first information report) registered against him by Punjab Police in the state’s Nawanshahr town on May 16.
However, the court did not give him any relief in the case registered against him and said that the singer was free to proceed with any remedy, if available.
Singh was present in the court Thursday.
Punjab Police had booked Singh for using obscene language in his songs. A case was registered against him under provisions of Section 294 (singing, reciting or uttering any obscene song, ballad or words, in or near any public place) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Counsel for the singer argued that his client had become the victim of his celebrity status. He said that Singh was not the Honey Singh who had sung the controversial song Main hoon balatkari (I am a rapist) on the basis of which the case was registered against him.
Meanwhile, dismissing the PIL, a bench of Chief Justice S.K. Kaul and Justice A.J. Masih said it was up to the Punjab government to set up a mechanism for screening vulgar and obscene songs, and to decide as to what should be the “checks and balances” to be incorporated in such a mechanism.
The high court had, in May, come down heavily on the lewd lyrics of Singh’s songs and directed Punjab Police to book him for obscenity.
A division bench of the high court had said that Singh’s “songs make us hang our heads in shame.”
The bench said that singers like him should be boycotted as his songs were disrespectful to women.
