Colors TV has said it would take steps to expel cartoonist Aseem Trivedi from the popular reality television show ‘Bigg Boss’ soon, Ramdas Athawale, president of the Republican Party of India (Athawale) told journalists on Saturday.
Mr. Athawale demanded Mr. Trivedi’s expulsion as the cartoonist had “hurt the sentiments” of the Dalit community with his cartoons that had “grossly insulted” the national emblem and other constitutional symbols.
The channel had agreed to remove Mr. Trivedi from the show following a meeting with the channel’s representatives.
“Following the assurance given by Colors TV [to remove Mr. Trivedi], we have decided to put off our October 29 agitation against the reality TV show,” said Mr. Athawale.
He had earlier warned the channel for giving the cartoonist ‘undue prominence.’
“The channel’s decision follows RPI’s protest against Trivedi’s inclusion in the show,” he said.
The 25-year-old cartoonist, whose sedition charges had recently been revoked by the Maharashtra government, had debuted on Season 6 of the TV show.
Meanwhile, Colors TV has clarified that it had no intention to hurt anybody’s feelings and its content was rooted in family entertainment
Sources told The Hindu that Mr. Trivedi was likely to be expelled in the next episode to be aired on Friday.
