Kunal Kamra Row: Mumbai Police to Issue Second Summons Today Over ‘Traitor’ Joke

Kunal Kamra Row: The Mumbai Police have reportedly decided to reject the comedian’s request for a week’s extension to appear before the authorities. Kunal Kamra’s lawyer submitted the appeal and the reply at the Khar Police Station, which has been turned down by the police.

The Khar Police will issue a second summons to Kunal Kamra today. The police had earlier sent him a summons, asking him to appear before the police on Tuesday.

Earlier, Mumbai Police sent a summons to the stand-up artist asking him to appear before the investigating officer on Tuesday.

The MIDC police registered a first information report against Kamra for his remarks during a stand-up comedy show, which was then transferred to Khar police for further investigation.

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Kamra sparked up a political storm with his controversial 'gaddar' (traitor) joke, which was allegedly aimed at Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT)'s mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ pointed out Prime Minister Narendra Modi's comment that “criticism is the soul of democracy" and questioned the “extreme response” by the Devendra Fadnavis government in responding to Kunal Kamra's jokes.

“Slogans about 'khoke' (use of money power) echoed across the state. Kunal Kamra merely rehashed this in a parody song, so what was new? It was 'old wine in a new bottle',” the Marathi publication said.

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During his latest stand-up performance 'Naya Bharat', Kamra took a veiled dig at Shinde, mocking him in a parody song and calling him a traitor without naming him. The joke referred to Shinde breaking away from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena to join hands with the BJP and subsequently form the government in Maharashtra in 2022.

Soon after Kamra's subtle dig at Shinde went viral, angry Shiv Sena workers vandalised the Habitat Centre, where his show was held last week, as a sign of protest.

Unfazed by the attack and the series of FIRs that followed, Kamra maintained that he was exercising his fundamental right to freedom of speech, saying, "As far as I know, it is not against the law to poke fun at our leaders and the circus that is our political system."

A huge controversy erupted when Kunal Kamra's video, released on Sunday, went viral, prompting Shiv Sena workers to vandalise the show venue, Habitat Studio, in Mumbai's Khar area. Later, the BMC also demolished a part of the venue's construction, citing alleged irregularities in construction, and is awaiting more documents from the owners to resume its action.

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