Stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra, who is in the middle of a controversy over his remarks on Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, has found support from Shinde’s bête noire and Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray.
Thackeray said Kamra had not done anything wrong but merely expressed his views.
“He stated the facts and voiced the public opinion,” Thackeray told reporters in Mumbai. “Kamra hasn't done anything wrong...These traitors don't see Solapurkar and Koratkar who insulted Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj”.
Thackeray was referring to the protests seeking the arrest of Prashant Koratkar, a Nagpur-based journalist, and actor Rahul Solapurkar for their alleged objectionable remarks against Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
Kamra, during his performance at the Habitat Comedy Club, referred to Shinde as a "traitor" and sang a parody of a popular Hindi song to describe the Shiv Sena leader’s 2022 rebellion against Uddhav.
His remarks triggered protests with a group of Shiv Sena workers ransacking the venue at the Unicontinental Hotel.
Mumbai Police have arrested Shiv Sena functionary Rahul Kanal and 11 others over the incident. Around 19 people have been identified and named in the FIR while 15-20 persons involved in ransacking the venue remain unidentified, said police.
‘Whole world knows who the traitor is’
Uddhav Thackeray’s son and Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aditya Thackeray echoed his father’s views as he compared the Shinde group’s threat to Kamra with the Taliban.
“The whole country, the whole world knows who the traitor and the thief is,” he said.
Referring to Chief Minister Eknath Shide’s remarks that the culprits in Nagpur violence would be made to compensate for the loss, the junior Thackeray asked whether those who ransacked Kamra’s venue would also be made to compensate for the loss.
“The CM should open his eyes and see who is undermining him. Is it the opposition or his friends?,” Aditya said.