Goa: YouTuber booked for derogatory remarks about Catholic saint Francis Xavier

Opposition Congress leader Peter D’Souza, who is among the complainants against Gautam Khattar, said the comments were deeply hurtful

The Goa Police late on Sunday booked Gautam Khattar, a YouTuber from Uttarakhand, for “hurting religious sentiment” over his allegedly derogatory comments about Catholic saint Francis Xavier.

Police said they received multiple complaints against Gautam Khattar. (X)

A police officer said they received multiple complaints against Khattar. “...have registered an FIR [first information report] against Khattar under the relevant sections of the BNS [Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita].”

Opposition Congress leader Peter D’Souza, who is among the complainants against Khattar, said the comments were deeply hurtful to the religious sentiments

Khattar, who describes himself as a “spiritual beat” journalist and makes content related to “Baba Sadhus, Sanatan Dharma, foreign devotees and religious places, allegedly called the saint a “terrorist” at Sanatan Dharm Raksha Samiti’s Parshuram Jayanti celebrations in Goa’s Vasco da Gama. He also made allegedly derogatory remarks about his remains in a casket revered as sacred relics.

Sanatan Dharm Raksha Samiti, which describes itself as an organisation working for Sanatan Dharma’s protection, propagation, and welfare, distanced itself from the remarks and apologised. “It is an unfortunate incident, and we condemn the remarks made by the speaker. We are tendering an apology to all our Christian brothers with whom we have been living like brothers. We never expected Khattar to make such a statement, and we immediately stopped him.”

The Aam Aadmi Party and the Revolutionary Goans Party also filed complaints against Khattar.