The Bombay high court has asked Maharashtra police to consider if any offence was made out against All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen leader Asaduddin Owaisi and party MLA Waris Pathan over their alleged remark that they would not chant 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai'.

A bench of Justices V M Kanade and M S Sonak was hearing a public interest litigation filed by Pune-based social activist Hemant Patil who alleged that the two leaders of the AIMIM had made speeches which amounted to spreading communal disharmony and hurting national integrity and unity of the country.

The bench, on July 25, asked the petitioner to make separate representations to the police stations concerned and further directed the police to take action, if required, on merits and in accordance with law, within four weeks.

The high court, accordingly, disposed of the petition while observing that 'representations made by the petitioner shall be considered on merits and in accordance with law as expeditiously as possible, in any case, within four weeks'.

The PIL urged the court to order an inquiry into the speeches made by the duo in the recent past in which they had allegedly showed dishonour to motherland by such remarks.