The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Haryana government whether it was willing to show “one-time magnanimity” and deny sanction to prosecute an Ashoka University professor over his remarks on Indian Army press briefings during Operation Sindoor, Live Law reported.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi said that if the state chose to show leniency, the professor, Ali Khan Mahmudabad, would also be expected to “act in a very responsible manner” going forward.

Mahmudabad, who heads the political science department at Ashoka University, was booked in May over a social media post commenting on press briefings conducted by Colonel Sofiya Qureshi and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh. In the post, he highlighted what he described as the irony of Hindutva commentators praising Qureshi, a Muslim officer, while remaining silent on alleged attacks against minorities.

“The optics of the press briefings by Qureshi and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh were important, but optics must translate to reality on the ground otherwise it’s just hypocrisy,” Mahmudabad had said.

He added: “Perhaps they [commentators] could also equally loudly demand that the victims of mob lynchings, arbitrary bulldozing and others who are victims of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s hate mongering be protected as Indian citizens.”

Mahmudabad was arrested on May 18 and granted bail by the Supreme Court three days later. The court, however, declined at the time to stay the investigation and directed the Haryana Police chief to constitute a Special Investigation Team to examine the language used in the post.

The professor faces multiple charges under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including provisions related to acts prejudicial to communal harmony, assertions likely to cause disharmony, acts endangering national sovereignty, and words or gestures intended to insult a woman’s modesty.

The court’s observations on Tuesday came after Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju informed the bench that while the police had filed a chargesheet in August, the state government’s sanction to prosecute Mahmudabad was still pending.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Mahmudabad, agreed with the bench’s observations, Live Law reported.

The court said it would hear the matter again after six weeks, allowing the state government time to decide whether it wished to close the case by showing “magnanimity”.

On August 25, the Supreme Court restrained a magistrate from taking cognisance of the chargesheet filed by the SIT and quashed proceedings in a second FIR against Mahmudabad, following a police closure report.

The case also drew the attention of the Haryana State Women’s Commission, which accused Mahmudabad of attempting to “vilify national military actions” and said he failed to respond to its summons in May.

Mahmudabad has maintained that his remarks were an exercise of his fundamental right to free speech aimed at promoting peace and harmony, and said his comments were “completely misunderstood” by the commission.