BJP MLC Ravi claims his comments not targeted at any community
BJP leader and Member of the Legislative Council (MLC) C.T. Ravi has claimed that his remarks made during a recent protest were not directed at
BJP leader and Member of the Legislative Council (MLC) C.T. Ravi has claimed that his remarks made during a recent protest were not directed at any particular community but at an individual. He also refused to accept a notice issued by the Chikkamagaluru police in connection with a case registered against him over the remarks. The case was registered following his allegedly objectionable remarks at a protest against the Congress-led demonstration in Delhi, which was held in support of students demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
When the Chikkamagaluru police went to his residence on Sunday to serve the notice, Mr. Ravi questioned the registration of the case and asked why the police had not consulted him before filing it. He maintained that his remarks were directed at an individual and had no reference to any community. “Who is the complainant, and what is the complaint against me? Give me a copy of the FIR before serving the notice. What prompted you to construe my comments about an individual as remarks against a particular community?” he asked the police.
He maintained that his comments were in reference to a person who had tried to set fire to a petrol tanker during the Delhi protest, and said he had no hesitation in repeating the same statement. Several of his supporters, who had gathered at his residence, also questioned the police and later raised slogans against them. The police pasted the notice on the wall of Mr. Ravi’s residence; however, his supporters tore it off.
The Chikkamagaluru Town Police registered the FIR based on a complaint by Mudassir Pasha, president of Jamia Masjid, Chikkamagaluru. Ravi has been booked under Section 353(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which pertains to statements intended to promote enmity between different groups.
The BriefWire