CJP urges Maharashtra Police to deny permission to BJP MLA Raja Singh to take out rally in Mira Road as it could result in a law-and-order situations The move comes after Singh released a video on social media calling people in large numbers to join his ‘Hindu Jan Aakrosh’ rally on February 25
20, Feb 2024 | CJP Team
On February 20, Citizens for Justice and Peace wrote a letter to the Commissioner of Police, Mira Bhayandar expressing concern over the proposed and publicised visit of Bharatiya Janata Party MLA T. Raja Singh to Mira Road area at 5 pm on February 25, 2024. The said area, which saw bouts of communal violence in the month of January, is now on the radar of the BJP MLA as he has announced a rally that will be taken out at Mira Road on the aforementioned date and time through a video put on his social media account. As per his announcement, the said rally will be organised by the ‘Hindu Jan Aakrosh Morcha’ to commemorate the birthday of Shivaji Maharaj, which is celebrated on February 19. Notably, this updated information regarding the postponement of the rally came after Singh’s planned rally on February 19 had been cancelled due to police not giving the required permission.
Highlighting the violent history associated with the ‘Hindu Jan Aakrosh Morcha’ and the antecedents of BJP MLA Raja Singh, CJP emphasised upon the consequences that it could have upon Maharahtra’s social harmony by stating, “Under the name of esteemed Shivaji Maharaj, a leader revered by the Maharashtrians, for his pro-people, plural and inclusive governance, the values that he stood for has been distorted by the Hindutva groups in a way that serves their purpose of divisive politics. The far-right groups have selectively valorised (distorted) the idea of Shivaji Maharaj to a parochial and downright communal element in Maharashtra, especially over the past two and a half decades. Seeing that the rally on February 25 is being taken out by Singh in his name, it is near certain that hate-ridden and provocative speeches will be delivered and calls for violence will be made. It is also necessary to keep in mind the recent track record of the name attached with the rally and the “principles” that the speakers and the organisers stand for.”
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It is essential to note that in the year 2024 itself, Singh had been booked by Maharashtra Police for allegedly making incendiary speeches at a ‘Hindu Jan Aakrosh’ rally, held in Solapur, Maharashtra on January 6. Referring to the same, the letter states that “There can be no doubt that if, with Lok Sabha elections around the corner the Mira-Road Bhayander police allows T Raja Singh to address the public, this will not just be a recipe for disaster but will polarise the atmosphere and create the social climate to ensure that the vulnerable sections are prone to aggression and violence.”
The complaint also provides the recent directives issued by the Supreme Court of India in regards to curbing hate speeches, which directs the police to video tape such events that has a probability of hate speeches being delivered and then file suo-moto FIRs against the speakers and organisers.
Concerned with the role that hate speeches play in stoking communal fires and instigating violence, CJP also mentioned that “Even as the law enforcement agencies had taken stringent action against those who had indulged in vandalism and violence at the time and attempted to bring the situation under control when groups belonging to different faiths had clashed, it was the dissemination of hate speech and incendiary rhetoric by the two elected representatives of the Bharatiya Janata Party, namely Geeta Jain and Nitesh Rane, that had further exacerbated tensions and contributed to the breakdown of law and order. It was only following the hate speeches delivered by these influential political personalities, especially MLA Geeta Jain, that on January 24, mobs on bikes with saffron flags had gone on a spree and vandalised shops of Muslim establishments.”
Noting the same, the letter further states “In this background, permitting another representative from the same political party, especially with a history of delivering violent hate speeches, will definitely lead to another untoward situation developing in the area.”
With this substantive background and facts, CJP urged for the Maharashtra police to urge you to take action as per sections 149 (Police to prevent cognizable offences), 150 (Information of design to commit cognizable offences) and 151 (Arrest to prevent the commission of cognizable offences) of the CrPC and any other provisions of law, as deemed necessary by the police.
The complete letter to the police can be read here:
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