In a strongly worded letter Rajya Sabha MP and BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, on Thursday questioned the Telangana authorities for its decision to extern Swami Paripoornananda from Hyderabad city limits for six months and has threatened legal action if the order is not revoked.
The BJP leader in the letter points out that law applied to extern Paripoornananda from Hyderabad does not apply as he is not a goonda.
Paripoornananda was externed from Hyderabad on July 11 shortly after Mahesh Kathi, a film critic, was externed from the city on July 9. He had threatened to take out protests across the state against an alleged statement made by the film critic against a Hindu deity. Both individuals were externed under the Anti-Social and Hazardous Activities Act,1980.
"I wonder whether the externing authority who has passed the said order has even read section 3 of the aforesaid Act," wrote Swamy in the letter where he argues that the section 3 of the Act used to extern Paripoornananda is meant only for the externment of goondas. The letter however does not mention Mahesh Kathi, who was also exterened under section 3 of the aforementioned Act.
"Its pertinent to note that a person in order to be externed under this section needs to be classified as a goonda. Externing swamiji under this section gives an impression of him being a goonda which is highly insulting, disrespectful and defamatory for a Sanyasi," wrote Swamy.
The BJP leader argues that the externment has violated the fundamental rights of the swami and warned the authorities saying, "It is my humble advice to you that you get these orders cancelled else, I will be compelled to take an action in the court and seek damages for the same."
Swamy’s letter was released a day after some BJP state unit leaders were taken into preventive custody and some placed under house arrest on Wednesday. The BJP leaders, had taken out a march to Pragathi Bhavan to meet with the Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, but did not have police permission. The leaders wished to submit a memorandum of protest to the Chief Minister about the ban on Swami Paripoornananda from entering Hyderabad city limits.