The Allahabad High Court has granted bail to a group of men jailed for having non-vegetarian food during an Iftar party on a boat in Ganga river in Varanasi in March. A group of 14 men were jailed over allegations of throwing non-veg food left overs in the river and ‘hurting religious sentiments.’Photo for representation (PTI)On Friday, in two separate orders, the Allahabad High Court granted bail to the 8 of the 14 men accused in the case. Justice Rajiv Lochan Shukla granted bail to 5 of the accused, while Justice Jitendra Kumar Sinha granted bail to 3.What court said in its bail order“Disruption of religious harmony by the acts of a few may lead to a larger incident,” Justice Shukla said in his ruling.Also read: Indian worker among 4 killed as Ukraine launches largest drone attack on Russia"The social media platforms, which disseminate information at lightning speed to every corner of the globe, have not only become a source of entertainment and information sharing but have also emerged as major hubs of disinformation. This Court is aware of the role that social media plays in disrupting the even flow of life, if misused. However, the Court, while considering the bail application of a person accused of an offence, must stick to the facts of the case, although bearing in mind the larger social issues," the order further read.The order added that the accused and their families regret “the pain that had been caused to the society at large.”Also read: PM Modi warns of ‘return of massive poverty’, flags ‘disaster decade’ of Covid, wars, fuel crisisJustice Shukla fixed May 18 for hearing the pleas of some other accused in the case, PTI reported.Earlier, the high court had granted one week time to the state government's counsel to file a counter affidavit. In the bail application, the counsel for the accused claimed that his clients were falsely implicated in the case, and that they were not named in the FIR.Also read: Drone strike causes fire at UAE's Barakah nuclear power plant in Abu DhabiGanga iftar rowThe FIR against the group of men was lodged on March 16 based on a complaint filed by Rajat Jaiswal, the president of the Varanasi chapter of the BJP Yuva Morcha. He claimed that the incident hurt the sentiments of the Hindus.The complainant alleged that the accused broke their Ramzan fast on a boat in the Ganga on March 15, ate meat, and threw the leftover waste into the "holy" river.They were booked under different provisions of law, including sections of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on defiling a place of worship, outraging religious feelings, etc.On April 1, a sessions court in Varanasi had denied bail to the accused, saying they appear to have intended to disturb social harmony.