Madras HC quashes FIR against Amit Malviya over Sanatana Dharma row

The Madras High Court quashed the FIR against BJP's Amit Malviya for his post on Udhayanidhi Stalin's Sanatana Dharma remarks. The court observed that the DMK minister's call for the 'eradication' of Sanatana Dharma amounted to "hate speech".

The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on January 20 quashed the FIR registered in 2023 by the Tiruchi city police against BJP leader Amit Malviya for allegedly "distorting the comments" made by Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin on Sanatana Dharma.

Court Calls Minister's Remarks 'Hate Speech'

Justice S Srimathy, while allowing the petition, observed that the remarks made by Udhayanidhi amounted to "hate speech." Elaborating on the issue, the judge said the minister's speech must be examined in its entirety. "He stated that Sanatana Dharma should not merely be resisted or opposed, but should be abolished or eradicated. In Tamil, the expression used was not Sanatana ethirppu (opposition to Sanatana), but Sanatana ozhippu (eradication of Sanatana)," Justice Srimathy noted.

Background of the Controversy

In the year 2023, Malviya posted on X, "Udhayanidhi Stalin, son of Tamilnadu CM MK Stalin, and a minister in the DMK Govt, has linked Sanatana Dharma to malaria and dengue... He is of the opinion that it must be eradicated and not merely opposed. In short, he is calling for genocide of 80% population of Bharat, who follow Sanatan Dharma."

His remark came after Udhayanidhi had while speaking at a conference in Chennai said 'Sanatana' (Sanatan Dharma) is like malaria and dengue, which should not be merely opposed but eradicated. "A few things cannot be opposed but should only be abolished. We can't merely oppose dengue, mosquitoes, malaria, or corona. They have to be eradicated. Rather than opposing Sanatana, it should be eradicated." (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)