Hyderabad: Suspended BJP legislator T Raja Singh has yet again been booked by Hyderabad police for allegedly making a hate speech during the Sri Ram Navami Shobha Yatra. He has been charged under IPC sections 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion) and 506 (Criminal intimidation).
Taking a suo-moto action against the BJP leader, J Veera Babu, sub-inspector of Police, Afzalgunj police station had filed a complaint with the police in which he stated that on March 30, in view of Sri Rama Navami Shoba Yatra, he along with other staff were deputed for bandobast duty at Siddiamber Bazaar.
Meanwhile, Raja Singh’s Shoba Yatra reached the Siddiamber Bazaar area and he allegedly delivered an inflammatory speech in Hindi.
The police alleged that Raja Singh spoke about the ‘love jihad”, a conspiracy theory, and allegedly threatened police for their alleged action against those who speak about Lord Rama. The suspended legislator questioned the police action against him for highlighting the plight of Hindu girls who are allegedly being ‘trapped in the name of ‘love jihad’.
During the speech, Raja Singh also addressed alleged threatening calls to his family members.
The whole speech was recorded on video camera by police constable Kirthi Kumar of Afzalgunj police station. “We have taken a legal opinion from the legal experts of city police and the contents of the speech attract action,” said M Ravinder Reddy Inspector Afzalgunj police station. Further investigation is underway.
The suspended BJP legislator is currently out on conditional bail after he was detained under the Preventive Detention Act by the Hyderabad police in a case for derogatory remarks on Prophet Muhammad.
The annual Sri Ram Navami Shobha Yatra here has become a show of strength for Hindutva groups to flex. The procession has also become a launchpad for Hindutva mascot and suspended BJP MLA Raja Singh to release new inflammatory ‘songs’ every year. In 2022, he sang a song degenerating Muslims and threatened to “kick” them out of India if they “don’t chant Ram’s name”. This year was no different.
Raja Singh as a practice has been singing songs and releasing them during the Sri Rama Navami festival each year. One of latest songs, ‘Baap Tu Baap Rahega’, was clearly a dig at the ruling government (or even the cops) for arresting him last year and putting him in the jail under the PD Act after he released a video passing derogatory comments against Prophet Muhammad. He did that in retaliation against the state got allowing comic Munawar Faurqui to hold a show.
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