Senior Kerala politician PC George was taken into custody by police on Sunday, May 1, for his communal and inflammatory remarks against Muslims. The police said cops from the Fort police station in Thiruvananthapuram took George into custody from his residence in Erattupetta of Kottayam district in the early hours of Sunday.
The former Kerala Congress politician had sparked off a controversy by asking non-Muslims in Kerala to avoid restaurants run by the community. Addressing a programme organised as part of the ongoing Ananthapuri Hindu Maha Sammelan in Thiruvananthapuram on Friday, he had alleged that “tea laced with drops causing impotence” were sold in Muslim-run restaurants to turn people infertile in a bid to seize control of the country — a claim that has already been established as fake news in the past. The 70-year-old politician, who represented the Poonjar constituency in the state Assembly for 33 years, had also urged non-Muslims to boycott businesses run by Muslims.
The politician’s speech was highly criticised as it propagated fake news against Muslims — and such speech has led to attacks against Muslims in the past. In November 2021, Kerala saw a concerted attack by Hindu and Christian outfits alleging that Muslims working in restaurants across the state “were spitting into the food.” TNM has also reported on multiple Muslim-run establishments being at the receiving end of this hoax and of WhatsApp messages circulating lists of “spit-free” restaurants. The ruling CPI(M) and the opposition Congress have also condemned his remarks.
The police on Saturday registered a case against George alleging that his speech at a conclave here promoted religious hatred. The police at the Fort police station took suo motu action against the former legislator on the directions of the state police chief Anil Kant. George, has been booked under Section 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups) of the Indian Penal Code, is being taken to Thiruvananthapuram, police said.
It is not the first time PC George has found himself in a controversy. The MLA is known for his obscene language and derogatory comments against women and for making anti-Dalit comments. In the 2021 Assembly elections, no political party wished to give him a ticket and he contested the elections as an independent candidate.