Actor Chetan Ahimsa remanded in 14-day judicial custody for tweet on Hindutva
A Bengaluru court has ordered Kannada actor Chetan Kumar, also known as Chetan Ahimsa, to be held in judicial custody for a period of 14 days. Chetan's arrest followed a tweet he posted on March 20 that criticised Hindutva. The actor had said that Hindutva, a political ideology based on Hindu nationalism, was "built on lies" and could be "defeated by truth”. He was arrested on Tuesday, March 21, by the Sheshadripuram police in Bengaluru and remanded in judicial custody the same day.
Chetan refuted the claims made by right-wing groups, including the belief that the Babri Masjid was the birthplace of the Hindu deity Rama, and the claim that Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda, who are considered to be fictional characters by historians, were responsible for the death of Tipu Sultan. In his tweet, Chetan said, "Hindutva can be defeated by TRUTH—> truth is EQUALITY." However, the First Information Report (FIR) filed against him said that his comments "threatened the religious sentiments of the majority of Hindus and created animosity between caste groups," and that he incited communal issues and posed a threat to public peace.
The court's decision to remand Chetan in custody came after his initial hearing. The actor was charged under Section 153A and 205B of the Indian Penal Code, which pertains to promoting enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc. The police had sought custody of Chetan for further investigation into his tweets.
In February 2022, Chetan was arrested for questioning whether Justice Krishna Dixit – a High Court judge who was hearing pleas against a ban on Muslim girls wearing hijabs in schools in the state – had the clarity to hear the case. Chetan had referred to a 2020 order in which the judge had made controversial remarks about a woman who was allegedly raped. Following public outrage, Justice Dixit's comments were removed from the order and were widely condemned as regressive.
Chetan Kumar is a US citizen and a Fulbright scholar who is known for his activism in support of Dalit rights. He has been involved in various protests against right-wing groups in Karnataka.