Devendra Fadnavis demands action against Sharjeel Usmani for 'objectionable' comments in Elgar Parishad speech

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday asked Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to take strict action against Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) alumnus Sharjeel Usmani for his comments on Hindu community during a recent Elgar Parishad event.

In a letter, the former Chief Minister said that the statement made by Usmani at an event in Pune on January 30 was "against the Hindu community" and was meant to 'disrupt communal harmony'.

"The statement made by Sharjeel Usmani at Elgar Parishad event in Pune on 30 January against Hindu community is defamatory, objectionable and is very serious, there is a need for the state government to immediately take strict action on it.. the statement made by him is objectionable and were meant to disrupt the communal harmony," Fadnavis wrote.

He also said that he hoped that a case would be registered against Usmani to send a message about the consequences for making such a statement.

Fadnavis further said, "When it was known what had happened through the Elgar Parishad event in the past, such an event should not have been permitted to happen. How wrong it was to permit this event to happen is now visible through Sharjeel's speech. It is not good to ignore things that happened in the event if the event was given permission."

Meanwhile, the Pune City Police filed an FIR against Usmani.

The complaint was filed by Pradip Gawade, Pune regional secretary of Bhartiya Janta Yuva Morcha, for allegedly hurting religious sentiments and using objectionable words against a particular community.

The Elgar Parishad event on December 31, 2017 organised by the Kabir Kala Manch at Shaniwarwada became controversial after provocative speeches were allegedly made in the event promoting enmity between people. It allegedly triggered the violence in Bhima Koregaon the next day.

The police investigation further found Maoist links in the Elgar Parishad 2017, leading to the arrest of 16 activists alleged to have links with the banned Maoist party.

Hyderabad-based poet Varavara Rao, Advocate Sudha Bhardwaj, Gautam Navlakha and Anand Teltumbde are among the accused who have been arrested in the case which is now being investigated by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

(ANI)

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