Mumbai Suburban Collector Shekhar Channe on Tuesday lodged an FIR against Shiv Sena leader Ramdas Kadam for his speech targeting the Muslim community during the Sena-BJP rally in Mumbai on Monday
The FIR was filed at the Bandra Kurla Complex police station on charges of promoting enmity between groups on the basis of caste and religion and registered under Section 153 of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 123 and 125 of the Representation of the People Act. Mr. Channe has also sent his report on the speech to the Election Commission.
During his speech in Marathi, Mr. Kadam referred to the clash between the police and Muslim groups in Azad Maidan in 2012 and said, “Five lakh Muslims had gathered at Azad Maidan. They attacked the police, burnt police vans, damaged the martyrs’ memorial and molested policewomen. When Narendra Modi comes to power he will teach such people a lesson.” The Shiv Sena has distanced itself from the speech. “These statements do not echo the sentiments of Bal Thackeray, Uddhav Thackeray and the Shiv Sena,” the party said in a statement.