On Monday, May 19, 2025, Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai accepted an oral request for an urgent hearing made by Ali Khan Mahmudabad, an associate professor of Political Science at Ashoka University. Mahmudabad had been arrested by the Haryana Police over social media posts related to Operation Sindoor.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing before the Chief Justice, urged the court to schedule an early hearing for Mahmudabad’s petition seeking to quash the FIRs filed against him at the Rai Police Station in Sonipat. "He has been arrested for making a patriotic statement. Please list the matter for hearing tomorrow or the day after," Mr. Sibal said. The Chief Justice agreed to the request.

According to earlier reports by The Hindu, one of Mahmudabad’s lawyers, Kapil Balyan, said the charges were “frivolous.” He explained that his client had been arrested under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for allegedly endangering the nation’s sovereignty, promoting enmity between groups, and other offenses—though, Balyan pointed out, similar remarks had been made by several political leaders and retired Army personnel online.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime), Sonipat, Narender Kadiyan stated that the arrest followed a complaint from Haryana State Women Commission Chairperson Renu Bhatia. Additionally, Yogesh Jathedi, a local sarpanch and general secretary of the BJP Yuva Morcha, had filed a separate FIR on May 17 making comparable allegations.

In one case, Mahmudabad was placed in two-day police custody, while in the case filed by Mr. Jathedi, he was remanded to judicial custody.