The Kerala Police may arrest Vellappally Natesan, general secretary of the SNDP Yogam, outfit of Hindu lower caste Ezhavas, for allegedly indulging in ‘hate speech’ intended at promoting enmity among different religions. However, Vellappally, currently leading the Samathwa Munnetta Yatra, an all-Kerala march of majority communities, said he did not fear arrest and getting arrested amidst the Yatra would be “doubly sweet”.
“A case was registered against him last (Monday) evening. We are examining the details of the speech he had made. The enquiry is in the preliminary stage. We will take a decision as per the outcome of the inquiry,” said a senior official of the Aluva Police which had registered the case against Vellappally under Section 153 (A) of the IPC.
The police booked Vellappally on the basis of a complaint filed by State Congress president VM Sudheeran over the alleged hate speech he had made at Aluva on Sunday at a reception accorded to the Yatra he was leading. A decision on arresting him would be taken after recording the statement of Sudheeran.
The BJP has pledged support for Vellappally while almost all other political parties, including the Congress and the CPI(M), have demanded stern action against him, accusing him of being a pawn in the hands of the Sangh Pariwar which is allegedly trying to divide
the Kerala society on communal lines.
The police on Tuesday morning registered an FIR against Vellappally before the First Class Judicial Magistrate in Aluva. They have decided to record the statements of the mediaman and others who were witnesses to Vellappally’s speech. The police would also question Vellappally after examining the recordings of his controversial speech and other aspects.
Sources said that the police were unlikely to wait till the conclusion of the Yatra for arresting Vellappally. The Yatra which had started on November 3 in Kasaragod is to end on December 5 at Thiruvananthapuram.
The Yogam chief is to declare the formation of a political party of the majority communities at the culmination of the Yatra.
“What is the charge against meIJ Trying to promote religious enmityIJ When we (the majority communities) speak of our grievances, nobody listens… It would be a doubly sweet experience of history if the march’s captain is arrested. I am not going into hiding. I will not take bail,” Vellappally said on Tuesday.
Referring to the compensation reportedly offered to the family of a young Muslim autorikshaw driver, Noushad, who lost his life while trying to save two Andhra Pradesh natives who had fallen into a sewage manhole in Kozhikode last week, Vellappally had said in Aluva on Sunday that the Government provided financial assistance only to the minorities.
“The Government gave Rs 10 lakh and job to a family member of Noushad. If you want to get compensation for death in an accident, you should be a Muslim,” the SNDP general secretary said.
This kind of assistance would not come from the Government when Hindus lost lives in accidents nor would “Ministers’ armies” visit the victims’ families, he added.
On Tuesday, Vellappally mellowed his stand a bit. In a Facebook post, he said Noushad was a role model for the youth and he prayed for his soul. However, he said in a public speech that two kinds of justices were prevailing in the State – “one justice for organized religions and another for unorganized communities”.
The BJP has pledged support to Vellappally in the issue but on Tuesday, it tried to cushion the impact of the controversy with State party president V Muraleedharan visiting Noushad’s house in Kozhikode. The BJP had entered into an informal alliance with the SNDP Yogam for the just-concluded civic poll in Kerala.
Saluting Noushad for his sacrifice, Muraleedharan said, “Nobody – the Government or anybody else – should try to misuse his name.” However, he defended Vellappally by saying that he was only pointing at the contradiction in the responses of the Government to such tragedies in the past and now, adding that the booking of Vellappally was an act of discrimination.