Laughs stay off limits; Opposition draws the line on delimitation

Greetings readers,

A comedy show, jokes, laughter, some gags that don’t sit well with a certain section of the audience, and all of this followed by threats, violence, FIRs and court cases. Sounds familiar?

In case you got confused and started thinking that this is last month’s DH Political Theatre and we are talking about the controversy involving comedian Samay Raina and podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia, you are wrong.

Another week and another comedian came under fire for a joke, this time on a politician, and his supporters vandalised the venue where the show was held, sparking another debate on freedom of speech and expression in India.

A similar debate echoed faraway in Turkey where thousands of people have been protesting the arrest of Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu - the main political rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Without further ado, here's everything you need to know that happened in the political sphere this week.

…and Shinde took it personally

Aurangzeb heaved a sigh of relief in his grave as all eyes turned to stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra after weeks of political squabble over the Mughal ruler in Maharashtra. The relief, however, came at the cost of a studio, the law and order situation and a ‘trivial’ thing called freedom of expression.

Nearly 40 workers of Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena ransacked the Habitat Studio in Mumbai’s Khar area where Kunal Kumra performed a stand-up gig and poked fun at Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde through a parody of Bollywood song ‘Bholi si surat’. Kamra apparently referred to Shinde as a "gaddar" (traitor) in the song, alluding to his rebellion against Uddhav Thackeray in June 2022 and the split in Shiv Sena.

While the audiences are still debating whether the parody songs, the jokes on industrialists or one of the vandals asking “Where is Kamra, he was here in the video just an hour ago,” was the funniest part of the whole episode, the comedian has been summoned twice by the Mumbai police.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has hinted at a collusion between Kamra and the opposition parties, as Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders Uddhav Thackeray and Sanjay Raut came in support of the comedian.

Shinde, meanwhile, said he does not justify vandalism and in the same breath termed the ransacking of the studio by his supporters a case of “action and reaction”.

Kamra, who has made clear that he will not apologise for his remarks, was granted transit anticipatory bail in the matter by the Madras High Court on Friday.

Limiting delimitation

In a show of solidarity of the opposition parties, the Joint Action Committee (JAC) on Fair Delimitation on Saturday urged the Union government to extend the freeze on the number and state-wise distribution of Lok Sabha seats for another 25 years beyond 2026.

The meeting of the JAC was hosted by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin in Chennai and was attended by his counterparts Pinarayi Vijayan (Kerala), A Revanth Reddy (Telangana) and Bhagwant Mann (Punjab). Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar represented Karnataka.

The notable absentees at the gathering included representatives from Trinamool Congress and YSRCP, both of whom had promised to send one of its MPs to the event.

The Telangana Assembly passed a resolution on Thursday challenging the Union government's proposed delimitation.

In the meantime, Tamil Nadu’s opposition party AIADMK and the BJP have fanned speculations of them reconciling after a bitter split in 2023.

AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Tuesday met Union Home Minister and BJP’s master strategist Amit Shah, ostensibly to discuss “failing law and order” in Tamil Nadu, but the development is likely to culminate in the two parties coming together ahead of the state Assembly polls next year.

Though Palaniswami has declined to categorically say if his party would align or not with the saffron party, the rumours are still afresh.

Shah’s showdown in LS as Immigration and Foreigners Bill passed

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said those who come to India for business, education and investment are welcome, but those who pose a threat to security will face stringent action while declaring that the country is not a "dharamshala".

Shah asserted this while replying to the debate on the Immigration and Foreigners Bill, 2025 in the Lok Sabha which was later passed by a voice vote after various amendments moved by Opposition members were negated.

Eyeing the West Bengal Assembly elections due next year, Shah hit out at the Trinamool Congress (TMC) for allowing Rohingyas and Bangladeshis to enter India on the basis of Aadhaar cards and voter cards.

He said while security forces are blamed, the real culprits are the TMC government in West Bengal and the earlier Congress government in Assam.

Opposition MPs claimed that some provisions of the bill seeking to streamline various services related to immigration and foreigners give ‘arbitrary powers’ to immigration authorities and demanded it should be sent to a joint parliamentary committee for detailed scrutiny.

In the name of decorum…

Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi was “not allowed” to speak in the House after Speaker Om Birla asked him to conduct himself in line with the rules of procedure that members are expected to observe.

"In this House, father and daughter, mother and daughter, husband and wife have been members. In this context, I expect the Leader of the Opposition to conduct himself in accordance with Rule 349 that deals with rules to be observed by members in the House," the Speaker said in the Lok Sabha, adding that MPs conduct themselves in a manner that upholds the high standards and dignity of the House.

Birla did not specify the trigger behind censuring Gandhi, who was present in the House and wanted to speak on some issue but the Speaker adjourned the proceedings after making his point.

While Gandhi claimed that the remarks against him were "unsubstantiated", in a post on X, BJP's IT department head Amit Malviya suggested that the Speaker's remarks were prompted by Rahul Gandhi affectionately cupping the cheeks of his sister and MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra during the proceedings a few days back.

An opposition parties' delegation met Birla on Thursday to flag the "denial of opportunity" to Gandhi to speak in the House, as well as the "politicisation" of his asking the Congress leader to follow the rules of procedure.

Constitution, quota and DKS in the middle of a controversy

Among various issues that rocked the Parliament proceedings this week was a controversy over an alleged remark by Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister in the backdrop of quota for Muslims in government contracts in the state.

On Monday, protests by the ruling BJP claiming that Shivakumar suggested changing the Constitution to provide for religion-based reservation rocked both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, with the Opposition Congress alleging that the ruling party is raising a “fake issue” to stall Parliament.

Denying making any such remarks, the deputy CM vowed to take legal action against “disinformation” on his comments about the Constitution and said he has enough common sense to not say anything controversial about it.

Yatnal’s rebellion too much to ‘adjust with’ for BJP

Former Union minister Basanagouda Patil Yatnal was expelled from the primary membership of BJP on Wednesday after he accused some party leaders of engaging in “adjustment politics” with the Congress.

After his expulsion, BJP MP B Y Raghavendra defended the party’s decision and said that this should be a lesson to all who speak against the party leaders in public forums.

Yatnal has been quite vocal against former chief minister B S Yediyurappa and his son and the BJP state president, B Y Vijayendra, alleging they were doing “adjustment politics” with the Congress and amassed wealth.

The move serves as a stern warning to the warring factions in Karnataka BJP.

Turmoil in Turkey

Turkey is witnessing one of the biggest protests in the country in over a decade as thousands have come out on the streets against the arrest of Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul and the top rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on accusations of corruption and supporting terrorism.

Imamoglu’s arrest came days before he was due to be elected as presidential candidate for the secular Republican People's Party (CHP). He was confirmed as the party's candidate for the 2028 election from his prison cell on Sunday, following a symbolic vote.

Erdogan, who has been in power for the last 22 years as both prime minister and president of the West Asian country, has lately been accused of plunging into authoritarianism by the opposition parties.

Braving riot police, tear gas shells and rubber bullets, the protestors, mainly university students in Istanbul and Ankara have continued their demonstrations for more than a week.

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said 1,879 people had been detained since the protests began, adding that courts jailed 260 of them pending trial.

On Friday, the Turkish authorities also detained Mehmet Pehlivan, a lawyer who defended Imamoglu in the latest investigation. Separately, two journalists who covered the anti-government protests in Istanbul were detained earlier in the day.

That is all about the political drama that unfolded this week. DH Political Theatre will come back again next week with more political advancements from around the globe.

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DH Newsletters Team