MP govt. yet to give sanction to prosecute Minister for remarks against woman Army officer
The State says the file seeking sanction is awaiting a decision at the gubernatorial level
On Monday, August 31, 2026, the Supreme Court of India revealed that the government of Madhya Pradesh has not yet sanctioned the prosecution of Minister Kunwar Vijay Shah for derogatory remarks made against Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, an Army officer. The State had initially contended that Mr. Shah might have intended to praise Colonel Qureshi, but struggled to express his admiration appropriately.
The Court's DIG Intelligence informed the three-judge Bench that the investigation into Mr. Shah's case was complete and the report had been sealed, awaiting State approval for prosecution. The request for sanction was submitted to the government in August 2025, a year ago. In a previous hearing in May, the Chief Justice of India had deemed Mr. Shah's behavior "unfortunate".
He suggested that if Mr. Shah wished to apologize, he should have done so immediately. Senior advocate Maninder Singh, representing Mr. Shah, stated that the Minister had made a public apology and requested the case against him to be terminated. The Court reiterated on Monday that it expected the State to adhere to its specific instructions from a January 19 order, which included deciding on granting prosecution sanction.
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