Indian Muslim comic cancels shows after right-wing Hindu groups object

By Ahmad Adil

NEW DELHI (AA) - An Indian Muslim stand-up comedian on Wednesday canceled upcoming shows in Mumbai after he was trolled on social media and accused of being "anti-Hindu" by right-wing Hindu groups.

Munawar Faruqui wrote in a social media post that "safety of audience is what matters to me," was the reason behind the cancelations.

"Upcoming Mumbai shows 29, 30, 31st October 2021 are canceled," he wrote on Instagram. "I don’t want my audience to go through what I am experiencing."

Faruqui has been recently trolled on social media with users causing the hashtag #GoBackMunawar to trend on Twitter.

Vinod Bansal, national spokesman for the right-wing Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) told Anadolu Agency that his group sent a complaint to police.

"He is the person who has been mocking the gods and hurting the sentiment of Hindu society," he said. "This man is not coming out of anti-Hindu mindset. We requested Mumbai Police to cancel his show and take action against him."

Shriraj Nair, a Mumbai-based senior member of VHP wrote on Twitter that far-right groups VHP and Bajrang Dal "strictly warns all self-proclaimed stand-up comedians who ridicule, mock or make fun of our great Hindu dharma, saints or our past glorious Hero's."

"We will teach them a big lesson Legally," he wrote.

Bajrang Dal in Gujarat said in September it will not allow Faruqui to perform in the state and threatened organizers with consequences.

Mumbai police spokesman Chaitanya S. told Anadolu Agency he was unaware of the matter pertaining to Faruqui.

In January, Faruqui was arrested in Madhya Pradesh state after he was accused of making indecent remarks about Hindu deities during a show. The following month, the Supreme Court granted him temporary bail in the case.

Before the top court's hearing, The High Court said that although there was no evidence against Faruqui, the comedian was also unable to satisfy the court that on the day he was arrested, he made no objectionable comments in his show.

Recently, Indian retailer Fab India had to withdraw an advertisement after backlash from right-wing Hindu groups. The retailer was accused of using the Urdu language, spoken by Muslims, to celebrate a collection for Diwali - a festival celebrated by Hindus.

Of late, there has been an increase in the attacks against minorities, especially Muslims, in India.

According to a February 2021 report by Human Rights Watch, "prejudices embedded in the government of the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have infiltrated independent institutions … empowering nationalist groups to threaten, harass, and attack religious minorities with impunity."

But those assertions have been repeatedly been denied by the Hindu-dominated BJP government, which claims to be protecting the rights of all citizens and minorities.