FIR in Bulandshahr against UK-based influencer over post on Nepal protests

According to police, the FIR was registered against Sharma, who hails from Bulandshahr, over his now-deleted post in which he spoke about Nepal's Gen-Z protests in India’s context

Arpit Sharma, a UK-based social media influencer

A case was registered against Arpit Sharma, a UK-based social media influencer and a chartered accountant, in Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahr district over his comments on the Nepal protests, officials said on Sunday.

According to police, the FIR was registered against Sharma, who hails from Bulandshahr, over his now-deleted post in which he spoke about Nepal’s Gen-Z protests in India’s context.

Sharma has more than 4 lakh followers on Instagram and over 1 lakh followers on X, formerly Twitter. He also has a YouTube channel with 11,000 subscribers.

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Bulandshahr Superintendent of Police (City) Shanker Prasad said, “His statements were deemed a threat to the unity, integrity, and sovereignty of the country.”

The FIR was registered under section 152 (act endangering sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita at the Kotwali Nagar police station in Bulandshahr on a complaint by a police constable Aslam Malik.

Sharma “deliberately tried to provoke unrest through his video and comments, and sparked public outrage”, the complainant alleged.

Sharma responded to the FIR via a post on X. “I have done nothing wrong… Hate cannot shake me. They are viciously defaming me, but I will try to stand tall.”

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“With Gandhiji’s values as my strength, Bhagat Singh’s courage & Baba Saheb’s constitution, I stand for peace, truth and unity,” wrote Sharma who is son of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Vikas Sharma who unsuccessfully contested the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections on party ticket from the Bulandshahr seat.

The protest in Nepal was sparked by a short-lived social media ban which led to thousands of people taking to the streets to show their anger over widespread graft and poverty.

Neetika Jha

Neetika Jha is a Correspondent with The Indian Express. She covers crime, health, environment as well as stories of human interest, in Noida, Ghaziabad and western UP. When not on the field she is probably working on another story idea. On weekends, she loves to read fiction over a cup of coffee. The Thursday Murder club, Yellow Face and Before the Coffee Gets Cold were her recent favourites. She loves her garden as much as she loves her job. She is an alumnus of Asian College of Journalism, Chennai. ... Read More

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