Noida: The complainant in a case against a 15-year-old girl accused of making abusive remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a protest has withdrawn her complaint after the teenager issued a public apology.
According to the complainant, Supreme Court lawyer Smriti Singh, she decided not to pursue the matter after the Prime Minister said he had forgiven the students involved and the girl apologised for her actions.
Complaint Withdrawn Against Eight Girls
Singh, a resident of Vasundhara, Ghaziabad, had lodged the complaint, following which a Zero FIR was registered on July 29 at Noida’s Expressway Police Station. The complaint initially named eight girls, with the Noida teenager being the first among them.
The case was registered under Sections 352 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), 353(1) (statements conducive to public mischief), and 356(1) (defamation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Singh said that after the Prime Minister appealed for forgiveness, all the girls released apology videos on social media. She had earlier stated that she would withdraw her complaint if they apologised.
“Since the Prime Minister forgave them, I also do not wish to pursue the matter further,” Singh said, adding that she had informed the Delhi Police and the Crime Branch of her decision.
Family’s Whereabouts Unknown
At the residential society in Sector 168, Noida, where the teenager lived with her mother, security personnel said the family had not been seen for some time.
According to staff members, officers from both the Delhi Police and Noida Police had visited the residence after the video surfaced. However, they said they were unaware of the family’s current location.
Officials at Noida’s Expressway Police Station stated that they had received no complaints alleging harassment of the family within their jurisdiction. Police confirmed that the Zero FIR was transferred to Delhi Police, as the alleged incident occurred in the national capital.
An officer added that the family had not remained in contact with local police and may have temporarily moved to Faridabad.
Mother Appeals for Leniency
Earlier, the teenager’s mother appealed to Prime Minister Modi to forgive her daughter, saying the family had repeatedly apologised and that the minor had been influenced during the protest.
She also urged the government to consider restricting access to social media platforms such as Instagram and Facebook for children between the ages of 10 and 20, arguing that minors can be easily influenced and should be kept away from political protests.
The mother further alleged that police personnel had repeatedly visited their residence despite the family’s apology. She also claimed that the FIR incorrectly described her daughter as a 25-year-old salon employee and requested that the case be withdrawn so the teenager could “live peacefully.”
The family’s lawyer, Anil Kumar, argued that the girl is a juvenile and alleged that the FIR had been registered without proper preliminary verification.
Background
The controversy began after a video circulated on social media allegedly showing the teenager using abusive language against Prime Minister Modi during a Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi.
The protest was organised over the NEET paper leak and alleged irregularities in the education system, with participants demanding the resignation of then Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who later stepped down.
The teenager subsequently released a public apology, stating that she had been influenced, was deeply embarrassed by her conduct, and described the incident as her “first and last mistake.”
Responding to the controversy, Prime Minister Modi said he had forgiven the students who allegedly abused him and his late mother, adding that they should be guided in the right direction rather than punished.
Delhi Police sources said that the Zero FIR remains under examination and has not yet been converted into a regular FIR, adding that no separate FIR has been registered in Delhi so far.
