Congress's Promise To Ban Bajrang Dal In Karnataka Manifesto Backfires, Mumbai Court Orders Probe
The complaint seeks action against Mallikarjun Kharge, Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar for releasing manifesto during Karnataka polls promising to ban Bajrang Dal.
Published : January 6, 2026 at 3:08 PM IST
Mumbai: A Magistrate Court in Mumbai has ordered police to investigate allegations of the 2023 Karnataka Assembly election manifesto of the Congress, promising to ban the 'Bajrang Dal'.
Alleging that its organisation was deliberately defamed through the manifesto, a Bajrang Dal activist has filed a complaint in court. Taking cognizance of the complaint, the Magistrate Court in Mumbai on January 5 directed the Bhandup Police to investigate the matter. Police have also been instructed to submit a detailed report of the investigation to the court by February 17.
A Bajrang Dal activist from Mumbai filed a complaint in the Magistrate's Court through his lawyer, Santosh Dubey, demanding action against Congress, its national president Mallikarjun Kharge, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar. The complaint stated that senior Congress leaders had released a poll manifesto promising to ban Bajrang Dal if the party came to power in Karnataka.
The complainant stated that during the Karnataka Assembly elections, the Congress had allegedly compared the Bajrang Dal to the banned terrorist organisation, Popular Front of India (PFI), which indulged in anti-India activity, in its manifesto.
The matter was heard before Chief Judicial Magistrate A A Kulkarni at the Magistrate Court, Mazgaon on Monday. On behalf of the complainant, it was argued in court that as per Section 3 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), only the Central government has the authority to ban an organisation so the promise made by the Congress party in its poll manifesto to ban the Bajrang Dal was false and defamatory. Additionally, the complainant also stated that the pledge to ban Bajrang Dal has tarnished the reputation of the organisation and its supporters.
Taking note of this argument, the court has ordered the Bhandup Police to conduct an inquiry under Section 202 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and has issued instructions to submit a preliminary inquiry report by February 17.
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