Prashant Bhushan Calls Madhu Kishwar’s “Bluff”, Lodges Complaint

Madhu Kishwar had, on Saturday, tweeted that she felt the accused family in the Kathua case was being “scapegoated”.

Deeply incensed by Madhu Kishwar's slew of hate tweets, especially following the rape of an eight-year-old in Kathua, senior lawyer Prashant Bhushan decided "to call the author’s bluff".

A well known academic figure and writer, Kishwar had on Saturday, 14 April, tweeted that the family of the accused in the Kathua case may have been "scapegoated". In her tweet she also attempted to shift the blame on to Rohingya refugees settled in the Jammu region. Kishwar asserted that Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti was using "this murder as a counterblast strategy".

Very likely that family accused of rape have been scapegoated. Murder of #Asifa suspected to be handiwork of jehadi #Rohingyas settled by PDP in Jammu region. Since Jammu people angry at settling criminal Rohingya in Hindu areas, Mehbooba used this murder as counterblast strategy https://t.co/Bji6ea2IUq

— MadhuPurnima Kishwar (@madhukishwar) April 14, 2018

Evidently disturbed by Kishwar’s commentary, Bhushan filed a complaint under Sections 153 A (Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc and doing act prejudicial to maintenance of harmony), 295 A (Deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulating its religion or religious beliefs) and 505 (statements conducive to public mischief) of the Indian Penal Code.

Criminal complaint filed by me today for serious offences u/s 153A, 295A & 505 of the IPC against serial fake news purveyor & communal hate & violence inciting tweets of Madhu Kishwar who thinks she can get away without accountability. Time to call her bluff pic.twitter.com/HcDV8ho2Sw

— Prashant Bhushan (@pbhushan1) April 16, 2018

In his complaint, Bhushan also mentioned that, according to the Jammu and Kashmir government in Assembly Budget Session 2017:

No Rohingya (Burmese) has been found involved in militancy related incidents.

Speaking to National Herald, Bhushan said he lodged a complaint against Kishwar because "she has been constantly tweeting false, communal, hateful and violence-inciting tweets, which are serious offences under the Indian Penal Code".

The lawyer also pointed out that while the police does not waste time in taking action against people who make cartoons deriding the Prime Minister, they often fail to do so against people who are inciting communal hatred and violence.

He told National Herald that while there are a number of trolls on the Internet who spread communal hatred, Kishwar is one of the ring leaders of the troll gangs and "a serial offender".

(With inputs from National Herald)