Hindu extremist remark: Actor Kamal Haasan gets anticipatory bail
Madurai, May 20 (UNI) The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Monday granted anticipatory bail to Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) founder Kamal Haasan in connection with a case registered against him by police for his controversial “Hindu extremist” remark.
The actor-turned-politician had sparked a controversy by stating that the “first extremist of Independent India was a Hindu and his name was Nathuram Godse during an election campaign at Pallapatti in Karur district on May 12.
The Aravakkurichi police on May 14 registered a case against him under two 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) of the Indian Penal Code, based on a complaint from the Hindu Munnani’s Karur district secretary K V Ramakrishnan.
Haasan moved the Madurai Bench the next day seeking an anticipatory bail by claiming that “the crux of his speech at Aravakkurichi assembly constituency was not about promoting enmity or disharmony among religious groups or sections of people.”
The speech made was on Nathuram Godse and was not about Hindus as a whole. Nathuram Godse himself, in his book ‘Why I killed Gandhi,’ had categorically stated that Gandhi had acted against the interests of Hindus, and had blamed him for partition.
'I believed in universal brotherhood and was for peaceful co-existence and hence he shall be given the anticipatory bail,' Haasan said in his petition.
The court reserved its order on May 16 on the petition and said, 'It would be good if the media stops telecasting Haasan’s speech and political parties refrained from discussing it.'
When the petition came up for hearing on Monday, Justice B Pugalendhi granted anticipatory bail with conditions stating that Mr Haasan was a leader of a registered political party and the election process was underway.
The court also took into account the entire speech delivered by the MNM leader during the election campaign.
The Judge directed Haasan to appear before the concerned judicial magistrate court in Karur district, within 15 days, to execute the surety bond.
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