A police complaint has been filed against Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut for reportedly using derogatory language against the Sikh community on Instagram.
The Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee lodged a complaint against the actress, which was filed at the cyber cell of the Mandir Marg Police Station in the Indian capital.
The statement by the committee said Ranaut had deliberately and intentionally portrayed the farmers protests in India as a “Khalistani movement.”
“ ... and [Ranaut] further dubbed the Sikh community as Khalistani Terrorists, and recalling the massacre and genocide happened during 1984 and earlier, as planned and calculated move on part of [late former Indian prime minister] Indira Gandhi,” the statement alleged, as reported by Times of India.
The statement continued: “It is submitted that the post is deliberately prepared and shared with criminal intention to hurt feelings of Sikh community. Therefore, I request your office to look into the matter on priority basis and strict legal action may be taken after registering an FIR [First Information Report].”
The Khalistan movement is a Sikh separatist movement seeking to create a homeland for Sikhs by establishing a sovereign state.
Meanwhile, Manjinder Singh Sirsa, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader and Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee president, separately lashed out against the actress on Twitter as well.
“Kangana Ranaut and her sick mentality does not represent the spirit of India. She is spitting venom against a particular section of society and is spreading communal hatred,” Sirsa posted on Twitter, while tagging the office of the President of India to strip her off her Padma Shri honour that she received earlier this month. The title is India’s fourth highest civilian honour.
“I urge the followers of Kangana Ranaut to see through her politics and policies of hatred. Do you subscribe to communal hatred as glorified by her? And those trying to threaten me or abusing me; I will be in Khar police station tomo. Show some courage and meet me [sic],” he continued, while adding that Ranaut belongs in a “mental hospital or in jail”.
The statements from the Sikh community are in retaliation to Ranaut’s comments on her Instagram story, where she deemed the farmers protests in India an act of terrorism. Things came to head this weekend when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi took the decision to repeal three controversial farm laws that resulted in widespread protests in the country these past few months.
“Khalistani terrorists may be arm twisting the government today... But let’s not forget one woman... The only woman prime minister ne inn neechee crush kiya tha... [crushed them under her] No matter how much suffering she caused to this nation... she crushed them like mosquitos at the cost of her own life...,” posted Ranaut, while referring to late Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
Ranaut will be depicting Gandhi in an upcoming Bollywood film called ‘Emergency’.
Gandhi was assassinated on October 31, 1984 at her residence in New Delhi by her Sikh bodyguards.
