A man named Bairi Naresh was booked by the Telangana police on Friday, December 30, after a video purportedly showing him making derogatory comments about the deity Ayyappa went viral. Naresh is the state president of the Bharata Nasthika Samajam (Atheist Society of India) and has been accused of making derogatory remarks about Ayyappa, thereby hurting the religious sentiments of the deity’s devotees and Hindus at large, while addressing a meeting in Vikarabad district on December 19. Several people including Ayyappa devotees staged protests in Telangana on Friday, and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), as well as various right-wing groups, have demanded action against Naresh.
The viral video is from an event in Ravulapally village of Kodangal Mandal in Vikarabad, on the occasion of the unveiling of a statue of BR Ambedkar, according to reports. In the video, Naresh is heard giving a fervent speech in favour of atheism and rationalism. “They put ignorance and darkness in our children’s minds, and one person says ‘Rama rajyam’, one says ‘Jai Sri Ram’, and now they’re saying ‘Ayyappa’,” Naresh said. He allegedly called on atheists in the gathering to recall ‘Ayyappa’s history’, and went on to talk about the legend of the birth of the deity in sexually explicit language. Ayyappa is believed to be the son of Shiva and Mohini, the female form of Vishnu.
Naresh allegedly narrated the legend using crude, colloquial language. The complainant against Naresh said that while he was browsing social media platforms, he saw the video of Naresh allegedly making 'derogatory' comments. The complainant said that the comments were made deliberately with an ulterior motive to ridicule and hurt the religious feelings of Hindus and purposefully to hurt the devotees who take Ayyappa Deeksha, adding that his religious feelings were deeply hurt.
Based on the complaint, a case was registered at Kodangal police station against Naresh under Sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion), 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), 298 (uttering, words, etc., with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Indian Penal Code, the police said. Vikarabad Superintendent of Police N Koti Reddy told the media on Friday that four police teams had been formed to find Naresh, who has reportedly left the district.
The speech has triggered outrage from many, including BJP Telangana chief Bandi Sanjay and BJP MLA Raja Singh who is an accused in several communal cases and was recently jailed for over two months under the Preventive Detention Act. Bandi Sanjay accused the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government of encouraging ‘blasphemy’ and demanded ‘strong action’ against Naresh.
Bandi Sanjay also compared Naresh to stand-up comic Munawar Faruqui, whose Hyderabad show was opposed by BJP leaders and had to be held amid tight security by the BRS government. In the aftermath of the show, MLA Raja Singh released a video disparaging Munawar, in which the legislator made certain remarks against Prophet Mohammed, triggering wide protests in Hyderabad and eventually resulting in his suspension from the BJP and imprisonment for 76 days under the Preventive Detention (PD) Act. Raja Singh has now released a video demanding Naresh’s immediate arrest. He demanded that Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, Minister KT Rama Rao, and the incoming Director General of Police Anjani Kumar ensure Naresh’s arrest under the PD Act within 24 hours. “Otherwise, lakhs of Ayyappa devotees in Telangana will lay siege to the Chief Minister’s official residence Pragathi Bhavan,” he said. He also said the police must think of what will happen to the law and order situation and how it would be disturbed if Naresh isn’t arrested.
Anybody can abuse Hindu Gods in #Telangana & get exonerated bcos @TelanganaCMO encourages blasphemy without taking any action!
— Bandi Sanjay Kumar (@bandisanjay_bjp) December 30, 2022
KCR claims to be “True Hindu” & his “Hinduvta is real” BUT so far what action is taken on insults against Gods Vishnu, Shiva & Ayyappa done in Kodangal ?
क्या हम इस व्यक्ति के खिलाफ कोई कार्रवाई की उम्मीद कर सकते हैं @TelanganaDGP, @TelanganaCMO जो हमारे देवताओं और भगवान अयप्पा को गाली दे रहा है। pic.twitter.com/69hDvyoJwm
— Raja Singh (@TigerRajaSingh) December 29, 2022
As many Ayyappa devotees staged protests against Naresh, one of them spoke to the media, warning him. “In 2014, you had insulted our gods at Kakatiya University in a similar manner. We taught you a lesson then. Remember that, we are warning you. You have insulted crores of Ayyappa devotees. We demand an apology from him, and the government must invoke the PD Act against him,” he said.
Meanwhile, a few Bahujan activists who defended Naresh’s freedom of speech pointed out that similar references were made about the legend of Ayyappa in a light vein, by the likes of filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma. However, the outrage is disproportionate when the critics happen to be from Bahujan communities, they alleged. Naresh belongs to a Backward Classes (BC) community. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) meanwhile has distanced itself from Naresh’s comments. “Protecting the Indian Constitution, religious tolerance, and protection of religious freedom is the policy of the Bahujan Samaj Party. The person who made inappropriate comments about Lord Ayyappa has no connection with Bahujan Samaj Party. We condemn his remarks,” BSP Telangana spokesperson Kongari Aruna Queen said.