Karnataka: Dalit Activist, Arrested for Five-Year-Old Social Media Post

Harohalli Ravindra, a Dalit activist, was arrested for a social media post attributed to him, that allegedly insulted Hindu gods reported The Hindu. Chikkodi police arrested Ravindra in Mysuru on Friday for the social message post that was reportedly uploaded in 2017!

According to the news report, he was booked under IPC 295 (injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class). The maximum punishment under this section is two years imprisonment and fine. A non-bailable warrant had been issued by a local court in this case. 

In the past five years, investigators “had been filing charge-sheets, identifying the accused as absconding,” stated the report adding that police stated that the accused was finally traced in Mysuru and arrested. According to the police, Ravindra was sent a notice in 2019, but had not attended the court till now. The case was registered against Ravindra after one Chandrashekar Bapu Munde, a Hindutva ‘activist’, filed the complaint in 2017.

According to the news report Congress leader, B.K. Hariprasad, spoke out in support of Ravindra saying, young leaders like Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani, and Ravindra were being targeted by a fascist regime. Hariprasad demanded that “Ravindra be released immediately.”