Kerala court remands BJP leader PC George to 14-day police custody in hate speech case

A court in Kerala’s Kottayam district on Monday remanded Bharatiya Janata Party leader PC George to 14 days in police custody after rejecting his bail application in a hate speech case concerning derogatory remarks he made against Muslims on January 5, Bar and Bench reported.

This comes after the Kerala High Court on Friday rejected George’s petition for anticipatory bail in the case citing his history of making communal remarks. The judge noted that the BJP leader had been implicated in an earlier case for making statements targeting Muslims in 2022.

He subsequently moved the Erattupetta Judicial First Class Magistrate Court for bail, which was rejected on Monday.

Earlier in the day, the police reached George’s residence in Erattupetta but found him missing. Later, the BJP leader, along with party workers and his family members, arrived at the court in the municipality and surrendered.

George was booked for his remarks against Muslims during a televised debate on January 5.

The first information report was filed on the basis of a complaint by the Muslim Youth League Municipal Committee under Section 196(1)(a) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which relates to the “promotion of enmity between different groups on grounds of religion”.

Section 120(o) of the Kerala Police Act, which relates to powers to deal with unlawful assemblies,...

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