Siddharth Vardharajan Recieves Assam Police Summon Despite SC Protection

Senior journalist and Founding Editor of The Wire, Siddharth Varadarajan, received a reprieve as the Supreme Court of India restrained the Assam Police from taking any coercive action against him in connection with an FIR linked to his article on ‘Operation Sindoor.’

Despite the Supreme Court’s order, the Crime Branch, Guwahati, has issued a summon to Siddharth Varadarajan. Citing powers under sub-section (3) of Section 35 of the BNSS, the police stated that reasonable grounds have been found to question him in connection with FIR/Case No. 03/2025 under Sections 152/196/197(1)(d)/3(6)/353/45/61 of the BNS Act, 2023, registered at the Crime Branch Police Station, Guwahati. He has been directed to appear on 22.08.2025 at 11:30 AM at the Crime Branch Police Station, Panbazar, Guwahati.

FIR on Varadarajan Over IAF Report

Mr. Varadarajan, was booked by the Morigaon Police in Assam under Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) following the publication of an article titled “IAF Lost Fighter Jets to Pak Because of Political Leadership’s Constraints: Indian Defence Attache” on June 28, 2025.

The FIR, filed on July 11 after a complaint by a local BJP leader, cited a statement by India’s Defence Attache to Indonesia, Captain (Indian Navy) Shiv Kumar, who revealed at a seminar that the Indian Air Force lost fighter jets to Pakistan on the night of May 7, 2025, during Operation Sindoor, due to “constraints imposed by the political leadership to avoid targeting military establishments or their air defences.”

Varadarajan Summon Sparks Legal Debate

On the development, Senior lawyer of Gauhati High Court, Santanu Borthakur, while speaking to Pratidin Time, said that the Crime branch ought not to serve a fresh summon on the case. 

“While the matter is under the cease of the court, an FIR and a fresh summon are not permitted under the law”,— Mr. Borthakur said.

Also Read:‘Assam Police vs Siddharth Varadarajan’: The Case in Light of SC Order