CJP lodges additional police complaints against Nitesh Rane and Ashwini Upadhyay for hate speeches Incendiary remarks by Nitesh Rane and Ashwini Upadhyay span multiple locations in Maharashtra
12, Apr 2024 | CJP Team
We at CJP have been closely monitoring the incidents of hate speeches delivered by leaders across the country, and have sent numerous complaints to police and administration, particularly in the state of Maharashtra. The three complaints filed this time were delivered in the first three months of this year by repeat offenders Nitesh Rane, who is elected member of legislative assembly from Kankavli assembly constituency, and Ashwini Upadhyay, the Supreme Court lawyer, known for filing spate of Public Interest Litigations. Notably, both the leaders are members of Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP), the ruling party, both at the state and at the Centre. Two of these speeches were delivered in events organized by newfound fringe organization Sakal Hindu Samaj. The given speeches were delivered in Akola, Mahabaleshwar, and Ghatkopar.
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The reported hate speeches repeatedly denigrate Muslim community by spreading conspiracy theories about ‘love jihad’, ‘land jihad’, and ‘population jihad’, apart from threatening physical violence and social ostracisation. The now demolished Babri Masjid and Madrasas remain other sites of constant barrage by the speakers.
This week, on April 8, 2024, we dispatched all the three complaints to the Superintendents of Police (SPs) and District Magistrates (DMs), urging prompt action, beginning with registration of complaints and investigation in these cases. Additionally, all the complaints sent through email have been marked to the Director General of Police (DGP) of the state, Rashmi Shukla. Evidence of the videos of these controversial speeches have also been provided. In these complaints, CJP has urged registration of offences under IPC Sections 153A (promoting enmity) and 505 (statements conducing public mischief). We have invoked the binding judicial order of the Supreme Court in the Shaheen Abdullah vs Union of Indian (Writ Petition (Civil) 940/2022), which mandate the police to suo moto register cases in incidents of hate speeches, as per the relevant provisions of the law.
Details of the hate speeches
Ghatkopar
On March 10, Nitesh Rane delivered a fiery hate speech at the event organized by Sakal Hindi Samaj in Ghatkopar, urging members of Hindu society to boycott Muslim hawkers, whom he indirectly referred as Jihadis and illegal Bangladeshi Rohingyas. He assurance the crowd that the government is on their side and not to worry about anything else, suggesting violence against them. Importantly, Rane was previously booked by Mumbai Police for giving anti-Muslim hate speech during this Solapur rally in January 2024.
The extract from his Ghatkopar speech reads, “Take an oath, if you see any hawker anywhere…we will not allow him to stand here. And if we still see him standing here, we will not apply saffron on ourselves again. Keep in mind, everything was caught on camera! The more you show this, the more these Jihadis, these Bangladeshi Rohingyas will think of destroying Mumbai, so please keep in mind. If any hawker here sees us from tomorrow, I will tell all my Hindu brothers, my brothers, sisters, friends, the government is with you, don’t worry about anything.”
In this case, we sent our complaint to Balwant Deshmukh (Senior Police Inspector, Ghatkopar Police Station) and Rajendra Shankar Kshirsagar (Collector and District Magistrate, Mumbai Suburban District) asking them to invoke IPC Sections 153A, and 505 (1) and (2).
The complaint may be read here:
Akola
Another speech by Nitesh Rane was reported from the event organised by Sakal Hindu Samaj on 18 February in Nimba village, Balapur, Akola. In this speech Rane charged at Muslims, and alluding to Babri Masjid and Tipu Sultan, accused them of Islamising historical monuments and places. Furthermore, he engaged in fearmongering by falsely claiming that Muslims are on a mission to reduce Hindu population, thus promoting fake conspiracy theory, often named ‘population jihad’.
The extract from his Akola speech reads, “…Now there is no benefit in further insulting the person whose name is Jalil. His parents have named him Jalil. What else should I do to him? But remember, brothers, the purpose for which he came here. The miscreants here are doing the work of reducing the population of the Hindu community, driving away the Hindu community from here and creating an Islamic nation in the name of this party…These people are praising Tipu. What did that bastard do…if anyone has converted more Hindus, it is Tipu…And the name of that Tipu has been given to our auditorium here…You should change that name in time otherwise Nitesh Rane will blacken that board and you will not be able to do anything.”
In this case, we sent our complaint to Bachchan Singh (Superintendent of Police, Akola) and Ajit Kumbhar (Collector and District Magistrate, Akola) asking them to invoke IPC Sections 153A, and 505 (1) and (2).
The complaint may be read here:
Mahabaleshwar
A senior lawyer and BJP leader Ashwini Upadhyay made a divisive speech at the event in Mahabaleshwar on January 26, attacking Madrasas and asking for the removal of minority status of Muslims. His speech, employing a now familiar theory of population jihad, argued that Muslims have abundant majority, and are unduly influencing electoral process. He went on to allege that even our election to select MLAs and MPs is ostensibly overpowered by the Muslim population. Notably, Upadhyay was previously booked by Delhi Police for organising an event at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi in 2021 during which provocative slogans were raised against Muslim community.
The extract from his Mahabaleshwar speech reads, “There is a disturbance across the world due to Madrasas. Is there unrest or not? …In those Madrasas in which they do not teach Indian culture, tradition, or way of life, why should we run such schools? Those who are numbered in crores, they decide who will be your MP or MLA, that community which determines the winning margin (of a candidate), and decides who will your councillor, Pradhan, MLA, or MP, does that community deserve the status of minority? There is no need of minority in India.”
In this case, we sent our complaint to Sameer Shaikh (Superintendent of Police, Satara) and Jitendra Dudi (Collector and District Magistrate, Satara) asking them to invoke IPC Sections 153A, and 505 (1) and (2).
The complaint may be read here:
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