Key Points:
- On Saturday, stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui from Gujarat along with four others were arrested by the Indore police after the son of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA lodged a complaint against them.
- Eklavya, who is also the chief of Hindutva group Hind Rakshak Sangathan, had been to watch the show and hence, filed a complaint about the show that, according to him, mentioned unacceptable comments.
- Town Inspector of Tukaganj Police Station Kamlesh Sharma told The Indian Express they have no evidence against Faruqui directly and that he has been booked as an organiser.
On Saturday, stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui from Gujarat along with four others were arrested by the Indore police after the son of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA lodged a complaint against them. Eklavya Singh Gaur, Local BJP MLA Malini Laxman Singh Gaur’s son, in his complaint, accused Munawar and the other four for using ‘indecent’ remarks about Hindu deities and Union Home Minister Amit Shah during a show.
The show was being held at a café in 56 Dukan area of Indore on Friday, the police said. Eklavya, who is also the chief of Hindutva group Hind Rakshak Sangathan, had been to watch the show and hence, filed a complaint about the show that, according to him, mentioned unacceptable comments. Faruqui was also accused of making derogatory remarks about Shah, and of allegedly mocking the kar sevaks who were killed in the Godhra massacre of 2002. The organizer of the program was asked to stop the show.
Eklavya Singh Gaur said, “We came to know about the program of a comedian named Munawar Farooqui. We reached there The Hindu deities were being mocked there. We also made a video of him. We brought them to the police station. FIRs have been filed against the accused in various sections.”
“A case was filed late on Friday night against Munawar Faruqui, a resident of Junagadh in Gujarat and four Indore-based persons based on a written complaint filed by Eklavya Singh Gaur,” in-charge of Tukoganj police station Kamlesh Sharma was quoted as saying by PTI. Gaur also submitted video footage of the show.
Prathvi Chandanshiv, one of the members of the organisation said that a 26- years-old man (Faruqui) used derogatory language for gods in a café in Chappan Dukan area. He was detained at the police station overnight and continues to be in the police custody.
On Monday, Town Inspector of Tukaganj Police Station Kamlesh Sharma told The Indian Express they have no evidence against Faruqui directly and that he has been booked as an organiser. “There’s no evidence against him for insulting Hindu deities or Union Minister Amit Shah,” he said. He said the two videos submitted by the complainant are of another comedian with him allegedly cracking jokes on Lord Ganesh.
A lot of comics have shown their support towards Munawar on Social Media.
