Media365
The Mumbai police has registered an FIR against stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra for allegedly making defamatory remarks during a show against Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. Kamra taunted Shinde using a modified version of a Hindi song from the film Dil To Pagal Hai. In his politically charged standup special, he called, what many believed was Shinde, “gaddar” or traitor. Kamra’s jibe at Shinde and other political leaders was part of his comedy special titled Naya Bharat, currently available on YouTube. It has amassed over 8 millions views after being posted online on Sunday. In the latest development, the Mumbai police has asked the comedian to appear on March 31 at Khar police station for further questioning in the case. This is the third summon issued to Kamra in the case filed by Shiv Sena MLA Murji Patel at the Khar police station.
Several political leaders condemned his remarks during a stand-up show and demanded action against him. On Tuesday, Kamra shared a new video mocking Shiv Sena workers for vandalising The Habitat comedy club in Mumbai, where his show was recorded.
Speaking in the Maharashtra Legislative Council after Kamra’s comments found backing from the Uddhav Thackeray faction of the Shiv Sena, Shinde said, “You keep calling me ‘gaddar, gaddar’, you will soon have to close the ‘daar’ (door in Marathi) of your party.”
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis also took a strong stand against Kamra’s remarks. He said the government would not allow freedom of expression to become a tool for spreading “tyranny”. “We appreciate humor and satire. We accept political satire, but we do not accept freedom of expression if it leads to tyranny.” He pulled up Kamra for staging “low-quality” comedy.
“This artist makes statements against the Prime Minister, the Chief Justice; he wants to gain fame by creating controversy. He targeted Eknath Shinde and staged low-quality comedy,” the CM said.
