FIR lodged against Munawwar Rana as he allegedly compared Valmiki with Taliban; his objectionable comment hurts Religious sentiments.
“Aggressive fighters and not terrorists”
Munawwar Rana had allegedly incited Religious sentiments when he compared Valmiki, who wrote Ramayana, with the Taliban.
An FIR was registered against Rana by Shishir Chaturvedi of the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha on Friday.
The FIR was lodged under sections 153A (Promoting hatred between different groups on the grounds of religion, race, place of birth etc.), 295A (intentional and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class) 505(1)(b) (to cause, or which is likely to cause, fear or alarm to the public), 3(1)(v) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
This took place at the Hazratganj police station in Lucknow. Bharti has stated that Rana, in his statement, hurts Dalits community feelings by comparing the two.
The 68-year old poet backed the Talibani account and called them aggressive fighters and not terrorists.
He further claimed that the Taliban is no more than Afghan fighters and a part of Afghanistan themselves. Their actions are simply the result of freeing their country from foreign occupation.
He added the disagreeable comment defending the Taliban, “Valmiki became a God after he wrote the Ramayana, before that he was a dacoit.
A person’s character can change. Similarly, the Taliban, for now, are terrorists but people and characters change.”
He further added that “When you talk about Valmiki, you will have to talk about his past. In your religion, you make anyone god.
But he was a writer and he wrote the Ramayana, but we are not in competition here,” Rana had said.
Justifying the killings
This is not the first time Rana has been in the news for hurting sentiments. In November, an FIR was registered against Mr Rana at Hazratganj police station on similar statements for defending the killings in France over Charlie Hebdo cartoons, for ‘creating disharmony’.
The Uttar Pradesh Police booked him under sections 153a, 295a, 298, 505 and others of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
While speaking to the media, Mr Rana had stated that the caricatures Happen to defame Prophet Muhammad and Islam. He further said that he, too, would have done the same had he been in his place.
