Kunal Kamra row: The BMC officials on Monday carried out a demolition drive at Unicontinental Studio in the Khar area of Mumbai, where comedian Kunal Kamra's show was recorded. The officials arrived at the premises with hammers. The whole controversy erupted after Kamra called Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde a traitor, and he also made fun of Shinde's political life without taking his name.
Earlier in the day, the Mumbai Police arrested 11 members of the Yuva Sena, the youth faction of Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, for vandalising the Habitat comedy venue.
The group was protesting against the alleged derogatory remarks made by standup comedian Kunal Kamra on his recent comedy special, 'Naya Bharat', uploaded on YouTube. According to police, the youth group went inside the venue while a live show of comedian Rajat Sood was going on, forcing it to stop and vandalising it.
Shiv Sena has strongly objected to the comments made by Kamra; meanwhile, the Opposition alliance in Maharashtra has criticised the Mahayuti government for the "breakdown of law and order", with Shiv Sena UBT's Arvind Sawant saying that every word spoken by Kamra is correct.
Earlier, officials had registered an FIR under Sections 132, 189(2), 189(3), 190, 191(2), 324(5), 324(6), 223, 351(2), 352, 333, 37(1), and 135 of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), 2023, and also under Sections 37(1) and 135 under the Maharashtra Police Act.
Shinde Sena's Sanjay Nirupam alleged that the booking money for the show came from Matoshree, the residence of former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.
"The place where this show was recorded – the booking money for it came from Matoshree from Uddav Thackeray – and that is why Eknath Shinde has been targeted," Nirupam said during a press conference in Mumbai.
An FIR has also been registered against Kunal Kamra for his alleged derogatory remarks. However, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Arvind Sawat backed the comments made by Kamra, saying that every sentence he made was correct.