India, Aug. 28 -- The Supreme Court on Thursday granted a four-week interim protection from arrest to journalist Abhisar Sharma and asked him to approach the Gauhati high court to challenge a criminal case lodged against him in Assam over a video.

"We will protect you, but why are you bypassing the high court," said a bench of justices MM Sundresh and Kotiswar Singh. "We are not inclined to entertain the challenge to the FIR [first information report]. We grant interim protection of four weeks to the petitioner to enable him to approach the high court."

Sharma challenged a private person's FIR against him for questioning the state government's move to allot 3,000 bighas of tribal land to a private entity for a cement factory. The video ...