Indian Muslim comic in jail for weeks for jokes he did not tell
New Delhi, India – A Indian Muslim stand-up comic has spent 25 days in a Madhya Pradesh jail for jokes he did not tell an audience, but on suspicions he was “going to”.
Mumbai-based Munawar Faruqui, 28, is facing legal action in two states. In Madhya Pradesh, he was arrested during a performance by Indore police for allegedly insulting Hindu deities while rehearsing for performance. In neighbouring Uttar Pradesh, he is sought by the police in another case of allegedly insulting Hindu deities as well as Home Minister Amit Shah.
On Monday, the Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court reserved its order on Faruqui’s bail application. The court was hearing the comedian’s bail application after two pleas were rejected by a lower court earlier this month.
Both the states are governed by the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), of which Shah is a member and which also controls the federal government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
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