Delhi: BJP leader files complaint against comedian Vir Das for 'maligning' India's image

Vir Das. File Pic/Yogen Shah

A BJP leader from Delhi has lodged a complaint against actor-comedian Vir Das alleging that he used "derogatory" statements against India at an international platform with an intention to malign the country's image, police said.

In his complaint lodged at the New Delhi district police station, Delhi BJP vice president and spokesperson Aditya Jha has alleged that Das, during the show at the John F Kennedy Centre in Washington DC, said in India, women are worshipped in the day and raped at night. All such "derogatory" statements were made on an international platform maligning the image of women and the country, Jha claimed.

"We have received a complaint in this regard and it is being inquired," Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Deepak Yadav said, adding that no FIR has been registered yet. Das on November 15 had uploaded a six-minute clip of the same video from his monologue, "I come from two Indias", on YouTube. On November 16, he issued a statement clarifying that his remarks weren't intended to insult the country.

In the six-minute video, Das talks about the duality of the country and mentions some topical issues in India, such as its battle against Covid-19, incidents of rapes, crackdown against comedians and farmers' protests. Some Twitter users posted video clips and pictures from his monologue, specifically the part where he says, "I come from an India where we worship women during the day and gang-rape them during the night."

The 42-year-old actor-comedian, however, posted a note on Twitter stating that his intention was to serve a reminder that the country, despite its issues, was "great".
"The video is a satire about the duality of two very separate India's that do different things. Like any nation has light and dark, good and evil within it. None of this is a secret. The video appeals for us to never forget that we are great. To never stop focusing on what makes us great. "It ends in a gigantic patriotic round of applause for a country we all love, believe in, and are proud of. That there is more to our country than the headlines, a deep beauty. That's the point of the video and the reason for the applause," his statement read. Das wrote that people cheer for the country with hope and not "hate" and asked his followers to not be misled by edited clips.

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