The Shivamogga police booked a Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) worker after he posted an image of Hindutva ideologue Savarkar flying on a bulbul, based on a paragraph from a class 8 Kannada language textbook.
Mansoor Ali Khan, a resident of Ragigudda locality in Shivamogga, posted the picture on his WhatsApp status saying, “A rare picture of Veer Savarkar watching India from the Andaman Jail on a bull bird.” Case booked against @sdpikarnataka activist Mansoor Ali Khan by #Shivamogga police for his WhatsApp status post on #Savarkar. An 8th standard #kannada school text book chapter on Savarkar said Savarkar would fly out of prison on the wings of bulbul bird & return. #Karnataka pic.twitter.com/qF5JMOxit6— Imran Khan (@KeypadGuerilla) September 2, 2022
The police registered a case against Mansoor and arrested him after members of the right-wing Bajrang Dal filed a complaint against him. He was booked under IPC section 153 (Wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot—if rioting be committed—if not committed) Prashtutha news reported. Mansoor was later released on bail.
Speaking to The Cognate, Mansoor said that it was unfair to detain him for posting an image based on a story from a government textbook. “If what I have done is a crime, then they should first detain the author of the textbook and the education minister for permitting its publication,” he said.
Recently, a committee headed by Rohit Chakratheertha added a text on Savarkar in a chapter named Kalavannu Geddavaru’ (Those who won against time) in the state’s updated Class 8 Kannada (second language) textbook. It says Savarkar used to visit India while in Andaman jail sitting on a Bulbul bird.
“In the room where Savarkar was jailed, there was not even a small keyhole. However, bulbul birds would visit the room from somewhere, on whose wings Savarkar would sit and fly out to visit the motherland every day,” the text reads.
The paragraph in the chapter has drawn outrage and mockery from some social media users, who slammed the writer and the Karnataka government for rewriting history and glorifying Hindutva ideology.
