Raipur: Chhattisgarh police on Thursday arrested Hindu religious leader Kalicharan Maharaj from neighbouring Madhya Pradesh in connection with his alleged derogatory remarks against Mahatma Gandhi, an official said.
During the conclusion of the two-day ‘Dharma Sansad’ (religious parliament) in Raipur on Sunday evening, the seer had allegedly used abusive words against the Father of the Nation, and asked people to elect a staunch Hindu leader as the head of the government in order to protect the religion.
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In videos that have gone viral over social media, Kalicharan accuses Gandhi of destroying the nation, The Wire has reported.
“Acting on a specific input, the Raipur police apprehended the seer from a rented room near Bageshwar Dham, located around 25 km from Khajuraho town in Madhya Pradesh,” Raipur superintendent of police Prashant Agrawal told PTI.
“He will be brought via road route by Thursday evening,” the official said.
On Sunday, an FIR was registered against Kalicharan Maharaj in Chhattisgarh’s capital Raipur for allegedly using derogatory words against Mahatma Gandhi.
A case was also registered against him at Akola in Maharashtra on Monday in this connection.
According to Indian Express, Madhya Pradesh home minister Narottam Mishra has stated that the Chhattisgarh police has violated the rules by not informing the Madhya Pradesh police. He has asked the Madhya Pradesh police chief to take up the matter with his Chhattisgarh counterpart.
(With inputs from PTI)