MUMBAI: A public interest litigation (PIL) has been filed before the Bombay High Court, seeking action against BJP MLA Gopichand Padalkar for allegedly delivering provocative speeches against the Christian community.
The petition, filed by Thane-based activist, Melwyn Fernandes, states that on June 17, during a public rally at Kupwad, Sangli, Padalkar made inflammatory and communally charged statements, linking the death by suicide of a woman from Jalna on June 6, to alleged “forced religious conversions” by Christian clergies.
According to the petition, these allegations constitute an abuse of public office, and are a “malicious attempt to vilify the Christian community, foment communal disharmony, and usurp the role of investigative authorities, thereby undermining the rule of law”.
The plea informed the court that a video of the MLA’s speech is in the public domain on online platforms such as YouTube, social media networks and news broadcasts, where Padalkar is allegedly found saying that there were rewards for beating Christians who conduct religious conversions and for killing priests.
Padalkar, from the Jat assembly constituency in Sangli district, allegedly proceeded to make communally divisive remarks, thereby stoking hatred and mistrust against the religious minority. The petition claimed that the sitting MLA mocked the foundational tenets of the Christian faith by ridiculing sacred religious beliefs.
Providing a transcript of Padalkar’s speech, the petition stated that he had allegedly said, “If Jesus can really perform miracles, let him remove me from my post – then I will listen to you. But he doesn’t do anything. So why all these protests?”
The petitioner contended that despite widespread public outrage and peaceful protests by over 5,000 Christians and other concerned across Maharashtra, including Mumbai (at Azad Maidan), the authorities failed to initiate suo moto criminal action against Padalkar and his supporters. “This inaction reflects institutional apathy, fosters political impunity, and erodes public trust in constitutional, governance and the rule of law,” the petition said.
“The statements have the dangerous potential to radicalise economically and socially vulnerable individuals, incite mob violence, and disrupt communal harmony and particularly against the Christian minorities,” it added.
It requested the court to direct the state to register a First Information Report (FIR) against Padalkar under Sections 153A (promoting enmity between groups), 196 (promoting enmity based on religion, etc), 351 (criminal intimidation), 74 (assault against women) 352 (intentional breach of peace) and other relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, for “provocative speeches that pose a grave threat to communal harmony, public order, and the secular ethos enshrined in the Constitution of India”.