Dalit Legislator From Gujarat Who Tweeted That Modi Idolized Gandhi’s Assassin Is Denied Bail
Jignesh Mevani, a Dalit leader and legislator from Gujarat state, had his bail plea rejected by the court of Assam state’s chief judicial magistrate after he was arrested for criticizing Narendra Modi’s silence over outbreaks of Hindu extremist violence against Muslims. Mevani has now been sent to three-day police custody.
In a tweet, which has now been withheld in India, Mevani stated that Modi reveres Nathuram Godse, the man who assassinated Gandhi and a member of the paramilitary Hindu supremacist organization Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
“PM Modi, whose god is Godse, claims to worship Gandhi. To keep up that pretence he should at least appeal to his ideological brethren to stop using Hindu festivals as pretexts to foment anti Muslim violence,” Mevani had tweeted.
Mevani’s aides reported that the police officers who arrested him were not carrying a copy of the police reporter and were unwilling to disclose the charges against him. He was not informed of the reason for his arrest until supporters of the Congress party, to which Mevani belongs, protested at Ahmedabad airport.
The case reveals the striking difference between Indian law enforcement’s treatment of Hindu supremacists, who routinely call for genocide, and people who voice their legitimate criticisms of Narendra Modi and the Hindu extremist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Supreme Court Slams Affidavit By Delhi Police Claiming No Hate Speech Was Made At Hindu Extremist Hate Speech Event
The Indian Supreme Court slammed an affidavit by the Delhi Police that glossed over the vitriolic hate speeches made at a Hindu supremacist event in December 2021, including anti-Muslim remarks by prominent news editor Suresh Chavhanke.
At the event, Chavhanke had administered an oath to a group of people, who swore to “die for and kill” to turn India into a Hindu rashtra (nation). However, the affidavit dismissed the genocidal nature of the hate speech, claiming that the speeches were about “empowering one’s religion to prepare itself to face the evils that could endanger its existence, which is not even remotely connected to a call for genocide of any particular religion.”
“The affidavit has been filed by a Deputy Commissioner of Police. We hope he has understood the nuances. Has he merely reproduced the inquiry report or applied his mind?” the bench asked.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal criticized the affidavit as well, asking if the Delhi Police was of the opinion that a call to “kill” was reasonable as long as it saved the “ethics of the community.”
“In the speech in question, they say, ‘We are ready to kill!’ And the Delhi Police say it is to save the ethics of the community?” said Sibal.
The bench then ordered the Delhi Police to submit a new affidavit before May 4.
Delhi High Court Claims Umar Khalid’s Speech During CAA Protests Was ‘Obnoxious, Offensive, Hateful’
The Delhi High Court ludicrously labeled a speech made by student activist and prisoner of conscience Umar Khalid as “obnoxious, hateful, offensive and prima facie not acceptable.” Khalid has been imprisoned since 2020 for leading protests against the Modi government’s discriminatory anti-Muslim Citizenship Amendment Act.
“All this is offensive and obnoxious. Don’t you think these expressions used are offensive to people? These are offensive per se. It’s almost as if we get an impression that only one community fought for India’s independence,” the High Court said.
The quote in question that was considered so offensive to the High Court was Khalid saying, “When Donald Trump comes to India, we will tell that the Prime Minister and Government of India are trying to divide the country; they are destroying the values of Mahatma Gandhi; and that the people of India are fighting against the rulers. If the rulers want to divide India, the people of India are ready to work towards uniting the country.”
Khalid had also said, “We will not respond to violence with violence. We will not respond to hate with hate. If they spread hate, we will respond to it by spreading love… But we will not let you destroy our country.”
Meanwhile, the High Court and India’s justice system as a whole have allowed BJP leaders who called for Muslims to be shot, advocated for violence, and spewed hate speech to walk free.
Karnataka Set To Implement Laws On Mosques Broadcasting Call To Prayer
Karnataka state, which has racked up a number of discriminatory anti-Muslim bans in the past few months, is now set to pass a law placing restrictions on the use of loudspeakers in mosques after Hindu supremacist groups launched a campaign to ban the azaan (Muslim call to prayer).
“The process is going on. Everyone should follow the law, there is a high court order on azaan. A circular has already been issued in accordance with that. The rule also specifies the decibel level,” said Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai.
Inspector General of Police Praveen Sood declared that the restrictions will be harshly policed, saying, “We will not allow violation of the High Court rule at any cost. The police have issued notices across the state… We will not let peace be disturbed in the state.”
His statement echoes the hate speeches of Hindu supremacist groups who have labeled the azaan as a “nuisance” and a disruption of the peace, despite the fact that Hindu supremacists have begun blasting hateful anti-Muslim songs and Hindu religious songs in front of mosques using loudspeakers.
