Hyderabad: A court in Hyderabad ordered police to release the suspended BJP MLA Raja Singh who had been arrested earlier in the day for his controversial remarks against the Prophet of Islam.
The 14 Additional Metropolitan Magistrate Court in Nampally returned the remand application for suspended BJP MLA Raja Singh and ordered that he be released forthwith. Tension prevailed at Nampally court where Raja Singh's followers were raising slogans in his support. Police had deployed heavy security near the court. The area witnessed sloganeering from both sides with police resorting to lathi-charge.
Earlier in the day, BJP suspended Raja Singh. The suspension and arrest came after citywide protests staged by AIMIM on Monday in Hyderabad demanding his arrest. The MLA had made the alleged remarks in a video posted on YouTube.
"You have expressed views contrary to the Party’s position on various matters, which is in clear violation of Rule XXV. 10 (a) of constitution of the Bharatiya Janata Party. I have been directed to convey to you that pending further inquiry, you are suspended from the party and from your responsibilities / assignments if any, with immediate effect.
Please also show cause within 10 days from the date of this notice as to why should you not be expelled from the party. Your detailed reply must reach the undersigned no later than 2nd of September 2022," read the BJP Central Disciplinary Committee letter.
Several police stations in Hyderabad were the center points of the protests that broke out after the video went viral on Monday night. The protesters had also blocked the entire road outside the City Police Commissioner's office in the Basheerbagh area while the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police of the South Zone was also stormed.
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In the video, the two-time MLA from the Goshmahal Assembly constituency in Hyderabad is primarily criticizing standup comedian Munawar Faruqui's work. While doing so, he makes a remark about Prophet Muhammed on the same lines as Nupur Sharma without attributing the comment to anyone.
According to police, complaints were filed against Singh in several police stations under the South, East, and West Zones. Dabeerpur Police Inspector G Koteswar Raos informed that an FIR was booked against Singh under various sections of IPC pertaining to promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs and criminal intimidation among others, as informed by a police official.
During the arrest, the Goshamahal MLA told reporters that his video was pulled down by the social media platform on which it was uploaded and that he will upload part 2 of the clip after his release. "They removed my video from YouTube. I don't know what the police are going to do. Once I am released second part (of the video) will certainly be uploaded. I am doing it for Dharma. I am ready to die for dharma," he said.
Singh sought to know why several complaints were lodged against him in various police stations. "Why there are complaints? Our Ram is not Ram? Our Sita is Sita? I requested the DGP with folded hands not to allow the person (Munawar Faruqui) who made comedy with vulgar language against Ram and Sita," he said.
The MLA had last week tried to disrupt Faruqui's show in Hyderabad, for which he was taken into preventive custody from his residence at Mangalhat in the Old City. He had reportedly tried to crash the venue in Madhapur with around 50 people to get the show canceled but did not succeed in doing so. Singh, known for his strong Hindutva views, alleged that Faruqui had insulted Hindu Gods in his show in the past and that had attracted police cases.
