BJP MP Tejasvi Surya booked for hate speech

Bengaluru: Bengaluru police have booked BJP parliamentarian, L S Tejasvi Surya, for promoting enmity and acts intended to outrage religious feelings. 

Halasuru Gate police registered an FIR against the Bangalore South MP after receiving a complaint from the Flying Squad Team (FST), a senior police officer told DH late on Wednesday night. 

The FIR has invoked IPC sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc, and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) and 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs). 

In addition, police invoked Section 123(3A) of the Representation of the People Act related to the promotion of, or attempt to promote, feelings of enmity or hatred between different classes of the citizens of India on grounds of religion, race, caste, community, or language, by a candidate or his agent or any other person with the consent of a candidate or his election agent for the furtherance of the prospects of the election of that candidate or for prejudicially affecting the election of any candidate. 

A police officer told DH on the condition of anonymity that the FST filed the complaint based on a representation from Campaign Against Hate Speech, a private organisation. 

The complaint refers to Surya's X post dated March 18, which garnered over a million views. 

Surya posted a video of Mukesh G, a shopkeeper from Nagarthpete, who was allegedly attacked by six young men for playing ‘loud music’ during Azan. 

Surya wrote: “A Hindu shopkeeper who was playing bhajans at his shop was assaulted by anti-social elements saying bhajans aren’t allowed during the time of ‘azaan’. 

“The emboldening of such elements is a direct result of Congress’s appeasement politics. Just a few days back, people who shouted "Pakistan Zindabad” were given bail. 

“With such political backing available to Jihadis, naturally such incidents of crime against Hindus have risen in our State. CM must stop setting wrong precedents. I call upon him to update the State on what action is initiated against the miscreants in this case."