Allahabad HC seeks UP official's explanation for not mentioning 'Hon'ble' for Union minister in FIR

The Allahabad HC has ordered Uttar Pradesh's additional chief secretary to explain why the honorific 'Hon'ble' was omitted from an FIR against a Union minister.

Published on: Apr 3, 2026, 22:47:46 IST

PTIPosted by Yamini C S

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The Allahabad High Court has sought an explanation from the additional chief secretary (home) of Uttar Pradesh over the non-mentioning of the courtesy title 'Hon'ble' before the name of a Union minister in an FIR.

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A two-judge bench of Justices J J Munir and Tarun Saxena passed the order after hearing a petition filed by a person named Harshit Sharma and two others, seeking the quashing of an FIR registered against them in Mathura.

In the order passed on March 31, the court said that even if the prefix 'Hon'ble Minister' was inappropriately described by the first informant, it was the duty of the police to abide by the protocol by inserting the honorific while writing the FIR.

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Fixing April 6 for the next hearing, the court said, "The additional chief secretary (home), government of Uttar Pradesh, will explain on his affidavit why the Hon'ble Union minister, whose name figures in the FIR, has not been described with the usual honorific of Hon'ble, and at one point, referred to just by his name without even appending a 'Mr'."

Even if in the written report, the minister was inappropriately described by the first informant, while writing the FIR, it was the duty of the police to have abided by the protocol by inserting the honorific, may be in brackets, it added.

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The court directed the registrar (compliance) to communicate the court's order to the additional chief secretary and the Mathura SSP within 48 hours.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Yamini C S
Yamini CS is a Senior Content Producer at Hindustan Times with nearly six years of experience in digital journalism. She is part of the India News desk, where she works on a wide range of stories cutting across civic issues, city-based developments, politics, governance, public policy, breaking news, trending topics, and international affairs that have an impact on India. Her role involves tracking fast-moving developments, verifying information from official and on-ground sources, and presenting news in a clear, accessible format for a digital-first audience. A significant part of her work includes handling live blogs during major news events, such as elections, court verdicts, political developments, civic disruptions, protests, weather-related alerts, and unfolding national or international incidents. Through live coverage, she focuses on timely updates to help readers follow complex stories as they evolve. Before moving to the broader India News desk, Yamini was associated with the Bengaluru desk at Hindustan Times, where she extensively covered urban governance, infrastructure, traffic and transport issues, weather events, public grievances, and civic administration in the city. This experience strengthened her grounding in city reporting and sharpened her focus on citizen-centric journalism. She began her career as a correspondent with Reuters after completing a postgraduate diploma in journalism from the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media. Her early training instilled a strong emphasis on accuracy, sourcing, and news ethics, which continue to shape her reporting style. Outside of work, Yamini enjoys reading across genres, listening to music, and spending time with her family, which help her maintain balance in a fast-paced newsroom environment.Read More

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This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.