Hindustan Times (Chandigarh)

No apology for Pak comment, says Ramya US throws weight behind Amnesty in sedition row

- Aditya Iyer

CHENNAI: A Karnataka lawyer has approached a court demanding sedition charges against actresstur­ned-politician Ramya for praising Pakistan, triggering a controvers­y with many saying the colonial-era law is being used to curb free speech.

Ramya, a Congress leader, visited Islamabad last week for a meeting of young parliament­arians from the Saarc (South Asian Associatio­n for Regional Cooperatio­n) nations. On her return, she said she didn’t agree with defence minister Manohar Parrikar, who recently compared Pakistan to hell .

“Pakistan is not hell; people there are just like us. They treated us very well,” she told reporters.

Lawyer Katnamane Vittal Gowda was “appalled” by Ramya’s comment and moved a court in Somwarpet on Monday against the 33-year-old leader. The court will hear the case on August 27.

Ramya, however, has maintained that she will not apologise for her remark. “I don’t think I am wrong. It’s freedom of speech. It is also our duty to speak on inclusiven­ess and peace. Curbing freedoms is wrong in a democracy,” she told news agency ANI.

Parrikar while addressing a gathering in Haryana’s Rewari district on August 16 had said, “Yesterday, our soldiers sent back five terrorists. Going to Pakistan is the same as going to hell.” Ramya disagreed with the minister’s comment, saying politician­s wanted to spread hatred.

“Everybody is entitled to their views and that is what democracy is about, you can’t force your ideology on anyone. It is really sad but such is the situation in the country today,” she told ANI.

Meanwhile, the Congress said if wanting better ties with Pakistan was sedition then the first case should be lodged against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“The entire country wants a better relationsh­ip between India and Pakistan. Certain elements in BJP and RSS are unnecessar­ily trying to gain cheap publicity by polluting,” party’s chief spokespers­on Randeep Singh Surjewala said.

He said the PM made an “impromptu stopover for festivitie­s” with his Pakistani counterpar­t Nawaz Sharif.

“The second case should be filed against BJP veteran LK Advani for praising Pakistan founder Mohammed Ali Jinnah,” Surjewala said. “Such cases should also be filed against all former Prime Ministers, including Atal Bihari Vajpayee, for advocating peace between India and Pakistan.”

Surjewala advised BJP and its leaders to refrain from playing petty politics. WASHINGTON: The United States has backed Amnesty Internatio­nal after a sedition case was registered against the global rights group in Bengaluru for hosting a Kashmir event where alleged anti-India slogans were raised.

State department deputy spokespers­on Mark Toner said the US supported the right to freedom of expression for anyone including the Amnesty.

“With Amnesty Internatio­nal, I’m sorry. Well, we obviously, as we do around the world, support the right to freedom of expression and assembly, including through civil society,” Toner told reporters here on Monday.

Toner said the state department was aware of the reports that police in Bengaluru have “initiated preliminar­y investigat­ion into allegation­s of sedition against Amnesty Internatio­nal.

The remarks came a day after Karnataka home minister G Parameshwa­ra said he had “not given any clean chit” to the rights group. He had earlier said the group was not involved in anti-national activities though some anti-India slogans were raised during its event.

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