NEW DELHI: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday slammed the Maharashtra government for taking action against comedian Kunal Kamra over his “traitor” jibe at Eknath Shinde but remaining silent over actor Rahul Solapurkar for comments on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
“You summon Kunal Kamra twice for insulting a traitor, but do not summon Rahul Solapurkar even once,” Thackeray said.
Referring to the communal clashes in Nagpur which left one dead and 40 wounded, he said, “Hindus are given a bell to ring and later used for riots. Action is taken against them, their houses are burnt, and those who caused the riots go and hug the people.”
He also called out BJP’s hypocrisy on its recent “Saugat-e-Modi” initiative and said, “When Shiv Sena received overwhelming support from Muslim voters, a hue and cry was made, saying that I had abandoned Hindutva. They even coined terms like ‘Satta-Jihad’. But now, the same people have reversed their position.”
Solapurkar recently faced criticism for saying in a podcast that Shivaji Maharaj, the 17th-century Maratha warrior king, escaped from Agra Fort by bribing Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb’s officials, rather than hiding in a basket of sweets as commonly believed. Some right-wing organizations had objected to his use of the term “bribe.”
Kamra, on the other hand, was summoned by Mumbai Police after a controversy erupted over his parody song making satirical comment allegedly on deputy Maharashtra CM Shinde.
The Shiv Sena took offence to the jokes and filed an FIR against him. Additionally, the party workers vandalised Habitat Studio where Kamra performed, leading to several arrests of the vandals.