HC refuses to hear petition on Kamal's remark - Fusion - WeRIndia

The actor-cum-politician Kamal Hassan in a public gathering in Tamil Nadu remarked Nathuram Godse, the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi as a Hindu terrorist.

Some opposed this remark stating that it is the violation of election code as Kamal Hassan misused religion for his political gain.

Kamal Hassan made this remark at an election rally where the majority of locals are Muslims. The actor said that Nathuram Godse was the first “Hindu terrorist” of independent India.

A PIL was filed in the Delhi High Court by BJP leader Ashwini Upadhyay against the remark.

It sought the debar of candidates and deregistration of parties which misuse religion for electoral gains.

But a bench of Justices G S Sistani and Jyoti Singh refused to hear on the petition stating that the remark was made by the actor outside of its jurisdiction and hence, it cannot hear it.

Yet, the Delhi High Court asked the Election Commission’s directions to decide on the remark of Kamal Hassan.

Upadhyay is a lawyer. His petition has alleged that Kamal Hassan intentionally made the statement while addressing the Muslim majority crowd for election gain.

The petition also contends that it was clearly a corrupt practice under the Representation of the People Act (RPA) 1951.

The petition also says that as per the Model Code of Conduct, any party or candidate should not indulge in any activity that creates mutual hatred among the citizens. But, the petition intends that Kamal Hassan deliberately made the remark which leads to promoting enmity between different groups.

So far, the EC has not done anything on this. Hence, it sought the court’s intervention in this matter.

Image credit: Delhi High Court – After Bomb Blast image by Indian Exponent is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

Image Reference: https://www.flickr.com/photos/indianexponent/7754887856