The Punjab and Haryana High Court has granted interim relief to actor Raveena Tandon, filmmaker Farah Khan, comedian Bharti Singh, and screenwriter Abbas Dalal in a 2019 case for alleging hurting religious sentiments during a television show. The court has restrained authorities from taking further investigative steps until the next hearing scheduled for July 14, 2025.
This controversy started after an episode of Farah Khan’s quiz show Backbenchers aired in December 2019 which featured co-stars Raveena Tandon and comedian Bharti Singh. Some people felt that jokes made during the show were disrespectful to the Christian religion. The original FIR was filed at Amritsar’s Ajnala police station by Sonu Jafar, president of the Christian Front of Ajnala Block who alleged that the content of the episode had hurt the religious sentiments of the Christian community.
According to a report by Hindustan Times, Lawyer Abhinav Sood, asserted that the remarks were misinterpreted and there was no intention to offend anyone. The court bench led by Justice Manisha Batra noted that authorities had begun issuing notices under Section 35 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for further inquiry. As reported by The Tribune, the court has now restrained officials from pursuing such actions until the July hearing.
Following the controversy, both Farah Khan and Raveena Tandon had issued public apologies. Khan tweeted,“I’m extremely saddened that some sentiments have been inadvertently hurt by a recent episode of my show. I respect all religions, and it would never be my intention to disrespect any.On behalf of the entire team, Raveena Tandon, Bharti Singh and Myself.. we do sincerely apologise.”
Tandon similarly expressed regret, stating, “I haven’t said a word that can be interpreted as an insult to any religion. The three of us (Farah Khan, Bharti Singh and I) never intended to offend anyone, but in case we did, my most sincere apologies to those who were hurt.”
The head of a local NGO, Ashish Shinde filed another complaint at the Shivaji Nagar police station but the case was later transferred to Malad police station in Mumbai. Shinde claimed that the word “Hallelujah” from the Bible was used in a disrespectful way on the quiz show.
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