New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday (August 25) turned down a demand for prosecution of tribal welfare minister Vijay Shah for remarks he made last year about Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, reported The Free Press Journal.A Special Investigation Team’s (SIT) sought the state government’s approval to prosecute Shah according to the provisions of section 196(1)(a) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), but the Cabinet secretly took the decision on the issue and turned down the request.The Free Press Journal report added that after the completion of the regular agenda of the cabinet, other than the officers concerned, the rest of them had to leave the cabinet hall.Thereafter, chief minister Mohan Yadav said that Shah had already tendered apologies thrice for the remark. The chief minister added that the cabinet decided not to give permission for his prosecution, a position that was supported by all cabinet members.Shah himself remained present during the cabinet meeting and the discussion over the SIT’s request for permission to prosecute him.The prosecution sanction is necessary for the Court to take cognisance of the offence under Section 196 (promotion of communal hatred, ill-will) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.The SIT constituted by the Supreme Court had earlier completed its investigation and filed the final report, and was awaiting the sanction of the Madhya Pradesh government to prosecute Shah.Shah had made derogatory, communal remarks against Colonel Qureshi, who was one of the faces of the press briefings on Operation Sindoor, along with Wing Commander Vyomika Singh.“Jinhone humari betiyon ke sindoor ujade the…humne unki behen bhej kar ke unki aisi ki taisi karwayi (Those [terrorists] who wiped out the vermilion of our sisters [in the Pahalgam attack]… we avenged these people by sending their sister to destroy them),” Shah had said, repeating at least thrice that their community’s sister was sent by Modiji to destroy them.