Surat court issues bailable warrant against Anurag Kashyap

A bailable warrant has been issued against filmmaker-actor Anurag Kashyap by a court in Surat after he missed repeated summonses in a case over his alleged remarks on the Brahmin community. Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate JV Chauhan passed the order on Monday and listed the case for its next hearing on December 24.

A bailable warrant, unlike a non-bailable one, lets the person named in it secure release by furnishing the bail specified by the court. That means the immediate worry is the process, not arrest — provided Kashyap engages with the court.

How the case reached this point

The complaint flows from a post Kashyap made on X on April 16, 2025. Lawyer Kamlesh Raval, a legal advisor to Hindutva outfits Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad, filed the application. In May, the court directed that a case be registered under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita dealing with promoting enmity between groups, intentional insult with intent to provoke a breach of peace, and circulating false rumours.

Raval described a trail of missed dates:

• An initial request for Kashyap to appear for verification went unanswered.
• Proceedings were initiated and a summons was issued — he still did not appear.
• The court directed a public summons to be published in the Mumbai edition of a prominent newspaper — that too drew no response.
• Monday’s no-show led to the bailable warrant.

What the complaint alleges

The plea says the post disparaged the Brahmin community as a whole. A user named Aaditya objected to it, and Kashyap allegedly replied with what the complaint describes as an angry retort: “what have you achieved by being a Brahmin?” The complainant argues that line, and the wider exchange, was an attempt to insult the community — and that such statements could promote enmity between religious and caste groups across the country.

Raval also pointed to Kashyap’s influence as an actor, director and producer, saying his films reach people of all age groups and that the follow-up post showed an attempt to disturb a peaceful atmosphere. The controversial post was reportedly a reaction to objections raised by Akhil Bharatiya Brahmin Samaj and Vipra Sena over parts of the Hindi film Phule after its trailer released.

An apology came early

Days after the controversy erupted in April 2025, Kashyap publicly apologised to the Brahmin community. He said he had crossed a line by using abusive language while replying in anger to a cheap comment. On Instagram, he wrote:

“I sincerely apologize to this community to whom I did not want to say this, but wrote it in anger while responding to someone’s cheap comment. I apologise to all my friends, my family and the (Brahmin) society for my way of speaking and for the abusive language.”

Why this matters for film fans

Kashyap is one of Hindi cinema’s most outspoken voices. This case is a reminder that even a public apology does not automatically close a legal proceeding — the court’s process runs on its own track. For fans who follow his polarising social presence, the December 24 hearing is the next date to watch.

The allegations are those of the complainant; the court has not made a finding, and the case will now proceed when it comes up for hearing.

Source: The Times of India