Fourth FIR filed against seer, security cover upped
Earlier on Friday, communal tension erupted at Sambhajinagar and Ahmednagar after the video of a remark by the seer during his sermon in Nashik district went viral
The Kondhwa police station on Saturday filed an FIR against Hindu seer Mahant Ramgiri Maharaj, the fourth against the leader, on a complaint filed by Azad Samaj Party (ASP) legal cell chief for Maharashtra advocate Tausif Shaikh.
The religious leader’s security has been heightened after he made some objectionable remarks against the Prophet Mohammad and Islam during a public event in Nashik district a few days ago.
Earlier on Friday, communal tension erupted at Sambhajinagar and Ahmednagar after the video of a remark by the seer during his sermon in “Akhand Harinam Saptah” at Shree Kshetra Panchale in Sinnar tehsil of Nashik district went viral. He allegedly made the controversial remark while speaking on the situation of Hindus in Bangladesh and made disparaging remarks of the Prophet of Islam. Ramgiri hails from Sadguru Shri Gagangiri Maharaj Sansthan, Sarala Bet situated at Shrirampur taluka of the district.
Shaikh, 32, of NIBM Road, Kondhwa in his complaint to the police stated that the content of Maharaj’s speech was objectionable, defamatory and made with the intention of creating communal tension and inciting riots, thereby unlawfully harming national unity. “Ramgiri Maharaj’s speech was recorded with the intention to incite communal riots, spread fear and divide the society. The speech was widely circulated on social media with an attempt to create discord between two communities,” he said.
The police have registered a case under Sections 192 (provocation), 196 (promoting enmity), 197, 299, 302 (hurting religious sentiments), 353(2) (public mischief), 356(2), and 356(3) (defamation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Vinay Patankar, Kondhwa police station incharge, said, “Investigation has been initiated based on the complaint.”
Amid the row over his comments, chief minister Eknath Shinde had shared the dais with the religious leader during an event in Nashik district on Friday, and called him a “saint”, while minister Girish Mahajan and former Ahmednagar MP Sujay Vikhe Patil touched his feet at the event.
