Sanatana row: FIR against YouTube channel as Prakash Raj alleges threat
Prakash Raj had said individuals who aggressively advocate for Sanatana Dharma and Hindutva are not true Hindus but rather “contractors of Hindutva”
Actor Prakash Raj has taken legal action against a YouTube channel, alleging threats to his life and the safety of his family members following his comments on Sanatana Dharma. Based on the complaint, the Ashoknagar police have filed an FIR against the YouTube channel, Vikram TV.
In his police complaint, the actor accused Vikram TV of posting a video on YouTube containing provocative speeches that posed a direct threat to his life. In the complaint, Raj quoted the video, which reportedly included statements like, “Stalin and Prakash Raj must be finished?”
Prakash Raj in his complaint said the video depicted him and his family members in a bad light, effectively inciting people against them. He said the video was a clear attempt to issue a life-threatening warning to him and his family, demanding appropriate action against the YouTube channel owner and any other individuals involved.
The alleged threats come in the wake of Prakash Raj’s recent comments on Sanatana Dharma. Prakash Raj’s remarks on Sanatana Dharma, delivered during an address to writers and artists in Kalaburagi where he argued that individuals who aggressively advocate for Sanatana Dharma and Hindutva are not true Hindus but rather “contractors of Hindutva.”
“People speaking aggressively on Sanatana Dharma and Hindutva are not Hindus. They are contractors of Hindutva. Such statements are made for political ill-intentions. People must understand the motive behind such statements, I hope they will,” Prakash Raj had said while addressing writers and artists in Kalaburagi.
“An FIR has been registered against Vikram TV under sections 506 (criminal intimidation), 504 (intentionally insulting and provoking individuals), and 505(2) (sale of printed or engraved materials containing defamatory content) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC),” an official of Ashok Nagar police station said wishing not to be named.
These comments followed Tamil Nadu Minister Udayanidhi Stalin’s comparison of Sanatana Dharma with diseases like malaria and dengue, which further heightened the debate surrounding the topic.
“Legal opinion will be sought to determine if the actor’s case should be handed over to the CCB,” the Ashok Nagar police station official said.
The threat to the actor comes days after over 15 writers and intellectuals from the state have written to home minister G Parameshwara, stating that they have been receiving threatening letters for the past year and have sought time to meet him. They also said that they received letters saying that they would meet the fate of the late activists MM Kalburgi and Gauri Lankesh.
According to the complaint from the writers over the past year, several liberal writers in Karnataka have been persistently receiving death threats signed by an entity identifying as “Sahishnu Hindu.” While one individual was apprehended in connection with these threats, the threatening letters have persisted.
On September 2, an order was issued by Karnataka State Police Chief Alok Mohan directing the Bengaluru City Police Commissioner to form a special team to probe the matter, with an Assistant Commissioner of Police rank officer as the Investigating Officer (IO) and directed Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) to supervise the investigation.
A total of seven FIRs were registered over death threat letters to writers K Veerabhadrappa, BL Venu, Banjagere Jayaprakash, BT Lalitha Nayak, and Vasundhara Bhupati, which have been transferred to the CCB.
