The Naupada police in Thane on Wednesday took custody of controversial religious leader Kalicharan Maharaj from the Chhattisgarh Police for his alleged hate speech targetting a minority community, abusing Mahatma Gandhi and hailing his assassin Nathuram Godse during a ‘Dharam Sansad’ in Raipur on December 26. He will be produced in a Thane court on Friday.
Kalicharan Maharaj alias Abhijit Sarag is a resident of Shivajinagar in Akola in Maharashtra. He has been booked at various places, including Pune, Raipur, Wardha, Akola and Thane.
The Thane-based Naupada police registered a case on December 29 based on Maharashtra minister Jitendra Awahad’s complaint. A case under IPC sections 295 (A) (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), 298 (uttering, words, etc., with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person), 505 (2) (public mischief), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 34 (common intention) was registered against Maharaj and five other persons.
“We took his custody from Raipur court on transfer warrant on Wednesday. A team consisting of one officer and eight constables were dispatched to Chhattisgarh to take his custody and they are expected to reach Thane by early hours on Friday,” said senior police inspector S N Dhumal from Naupada police station.
Earlier, the Pune police had arrested Kalicharan in an FIR registered at the Khadak police station for an alleged hate speech given by him during the ‘Shivpratap Din’ programme in Pune on December 19.
Wardha police in Maharashtra had also taken Maharaj’s custody for his hate speech as a case under IPC sections 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot) 505 (2) (public mischief) was registered with them on a complaint from Congress leader Manoj Chandurkar.