Throwing non-veg food waste in Ganga could hurt religious sentiments: Allahabad HC on iftar party row

The Allahabad High Court has observed that throwing non-vegetarian food waste into the river Ganga could hurt the religious sentiments of the Hindu community.

While granting bail to five persons accused of throwing leftovers into the river during an iftar party on a boat in Varanasi, Justice Rajiv Lochan Shukla said, "The applicants are apologetic for their actions and even their families also regret the pain that had been caused to the society at large."

The court said, "Taking note of the entire facts and circumstances of the case, the lack of criminal antecedents of the applicants, the period of detention already undergone and also the apology expressed, as recorded above, prima facie a case for bail is made out."

In an order passed on May 15, Justice Shukla granted bail to the accused, applicants — Mohammad Azad Ali, Mohammad Tahseem, Nihal Afridi, Mohammad Tauseef Ahmad, and Mohammad Anas.

According to the order, the present case involves members of the Muslim community having an iftar party.

"During the said Iftar party, while partaking of food, non-vegetarian food is said to have been consumed by the members of the Muslim community, who are then alleged to have thrown the remains into the River Ganges. This fact in the dispassionate opinion of the Court could rightly be said to hurt religious sentiments of the Hindu community," the court observed.

The applicants, in jail since March 17, 2026, have expressed their regrets and have also undertaken never to repeat any such act in future.

In the same case, Justice Jitendra Kumar Sinha on May 15 granted bail to three accused namely Mohammad Sameer, Mohammad Ahmad Raza and Mohammad Faizan.

The FIR was lodged on March 16 based on a complaint filed by Rajat Jaiswal, the president of the Varanasi chapter of the BJP Yuva Morcha, claiming that the incident hurt the sentiments of the Hindus.

According to the complaint, the accused broke their Ramzan fast on a boat in the Ganga on March 15, ate meat, and threw the leftovers into the holy river.

They were booked under different provisions of law, including sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on defiling a place of worship, outraging religious feelings, etc.

On April 1, a sessions court in Varanasi had denied bail to the accused, saying they appear to have intended to disturb social harmony.