Mumbai: Shiv Sena on Monday strongly condemned the “distasteful and defamatory” remarks made by comedian Kunal Kamra during his recent performance at the Habitat Comedy Club in Mumbai.
Shiv Sena said that his deliberate attempt to mock Maharashtra’s Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and twist the state’s political reality into a tool for his propaganda is nothing short of an orchestrated attack against the leadership.
“He has once again misused the fundamental right to free speech, using comedy as a cover to malign individuals and spread politically motivated misinformation,” the party said.
The Shiv Sena in a release announced that it will not tolerate any attempts to insult or malign the leadership that is working tirelessly for the people of Maharashtra.
“We demand that Kunal Kamra issue an unconditional apology for his remarks against Eknath Shinde and cease using comedy as a weapon to spread hatred and misinformation,” it said.
“Kamra has a well-documented history of controversial and offensive behaviour, proving that this is not an isolated incident. He has repeatedly disrespected institutions, individuals, and religious sentiments under the pretext of satire,” said Shiv Sena.
The party added that his past transgressions include the contempt of court case (2020) in which Kamra faced contempt proceedings from the Supreme Court for a series of tweets defaming the judiciary and mocking former Chief Justice DY Chandrachud.
“His posts included offensive imagery and baseless accusations. ‘Brahmin-Baniya’ remarks in 2020, in which Kamra referred to the Supreme Court as a ‘Brahmin-Baniya’ affair during his show ‘Be Like’, attracted widespread criticism for his divisive rhetoric. In the airport incident in 2020, Kamra was banned by multiple top airlines after harassing a senior journalist mid-flight and posting the incident online with abusive commentary. In 2020 again, reports surfaced accusing Kamra of creating fake ‘X’ accounts to harass women in the comedy community,” the party added.
It said that in 2021, Kamra baselessly accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government of having “blood on his hands” during the COVID-19 crisis, furthering an agenda of misinformation and hatred.
“In a morphed video of a child, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) sought action against Kamra for sharing a doctored video of a child singing for PM Modi, misusing the innocence of a minor for political mockery. In the ‘Kashmir Files’ controversy in 2022, Kamra insulted India’s National Emblem by using a morphed image to mock the Kashmiri Pandit genocide and the film ‘Kashmir Files.’ Again in 2022, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) issued a legal notice against Kamra for allegedly mocking Hindu gods in his shows, leading to the cancellation of several of his shows.
“In 2023, Kamra legally opposed the government’s IT Rules designed to curb misinformation, furthering his agenda to undermine regulatory frameworks. During 2023-24, Kamra repeatedly mocked the Election Commission and spread baseless claims about the integrity of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs),” Shiv Sena said.
The party added that the freedom of speech is a fundamental right, but it does not provide a license to abuse, mock, or defame others.
It said that Kunal Kamra’s statements reflect a deliberate attempt to mislead public opinion and malign Eknath Shinde.
“His close association with Aditya Thackeray and the UBT Sena is a well-known fact, raising serious concerns that his latest stunt is politically motivated,” the party said.
Shiv Sena said that the timing of Kamra’s comments cannot be ignored, as they come immediately after the petition filed by the father of the late Disha Salian.
“It is evident that he has been strategically deployed by his political masters to divert attention from the ongoing investigation and mislead the public,” said Shiv Sena.
(IANS)
