INDIA. MUMBAI: Marathi TV actress Ketaki Chitale (29), who is in judicial custody for her allegedly derogatory Facebook post against NCP Chief Sharad Pawar (81), is in further trouble with Rabale Police (Navi Mumbai) booking her under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 for her earlier FB post.
Ketaki was arrested on May 15 and was remanded to police custody till May 18. On Wednesday, she was sent to judicial custody for 14 days (till June 01) by the Thane sessions court. She is accused of forwarding a derogatory poem in Marathi related to Pawar, which Nitin Bhave posted. Ketaki, who appeared in person without a lawyer in court, said there was nothing to remorse for since she merely forwarded a FB post as per her right to freedom of expression.
The actor has been charged with defamation, 501 (printing or engraving matter known to be defamatory), 505 (2) (making, publishing, or circulating any statement, rumor, or report promoting enmity, hatred, or ill will between classes), and 153 A (spreading disharmony among people) under the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
On Thursday, the Rabale police registered an offense based on a complaint by one Swapnil Govind Jagtap referring to Ketaki’s FB post of March 01, 2020, in which she reportedly made certain derogatory remarks against neo-Buddhists en masse visiting Chaityabhoomi located at Shivaji Park in Central Mumbai, on December 06 every year to pay homage to Bharat Ratna Dr. B R Ambedkar on his death anniversary (Mahaparinirvan Din).
Ketaki, in her FB post, stated that to claim as a Hindu is a sin. “We are busy claiming Brahmins as superior or the hatred against them. We also believe that the people of other faith like Muslims, Christians will drive away Brahmins.” She also stated that even great leaders are divided, with different communities claiming different leaders as their own. My post is not against any community, but it is undoubtedly against those dividing people based on castes and religion.
As the story developed, the Panvel police (Raigad district) arrested one Kiran Inamdar for allegedly posting objectionable comments against Pawar on Wednesday night. Kiran had shared Ketaki’s FB post. An offense was registered against him earlier, but he has been untraceable since then.
Besides Ketaki and Kiran, a 23-year-old pharmacy student Nikhil Bhamre was arrested by Thane Police from Nashik for allegedly sharing objectionable social media posts about Pawar. He was remanded to judicial custody for 14 days by the Thane Sessions Court.
There are nearly 17 offenses registered against Ketaki all over Maharashtra, including Bhoiwada and Goregaon in Mumbai, Rabale, and Kalamboli Police stations in Navi Mumbai, Pune, Akola, Ahmednagar, and Beed. In addition, a case has been registered against Ketaki and Nitin Bhave, the purported author of the poem shared by her, on a complaint lodged by an NCP leader in Dhule in North Maharashtra. FOR THE LAST FEW DAYS, the NCP activists have been protesting by hitting Ketaki’s photo with their sandals and slippers in different parts of the state.
Meanwhile, the Thane Police have sent Ketaki’s mobile phone for forensic test to find out from whom she was receiving the messages and whether there was any group behind instigating this type of trouble in the state.
While many leaders and Marathi film personalities have expressed displeasure against the actor’s misadventure, the BJP leader Pankaja Munde has opined that going by her age, she should be let out after giving her a strict warning. In any case, the actor has had Epilepsy for quite some time, due to which there has been no consistency in her acting assignments.
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