Morbi: Congress leader and General Secretary, Manoj Panara, filed a criminal defamation complaint in court against Hindu activist Kajal Hindustani on Tuesday for what he thinks her alleged defamatory remarks against the Patidars.

Panara stated that Kajal’s comments during an event in June 2023 had hurt the Patidar community. In a purported video, Kajal during her speech against ‘Love Jihad’ menace, in attempt to open the eyes of community gave an example and allegedly claimed that seven college-going girls from Patidar community had chosen partners from other faiths, engaged in boyfriend swapping, stolen money from their homes to buy a car worth Rs 40 lakh for their partners, while their mothers were making reels and fathers were occupied with earning money.

The example shared by Kajal for self-searching of community was taken as defamation by Congress leader. Suggesting that no community women or girls should be defamed, Panara lodged a complaint with the A Division police station in Morbi on March 18. However, Morbi Police has reportedly forwarded the complaint to Surat as the speech took place in their jurisdiction.

On Saturday, a rally took place, and Patidars submitted a memorandum to the Morbi district collector, urging the registration of an FIR against Hindustani.

Panara has filed a complaint against Kajal under sections 499 (criminal defamation) and 500 (punishment for defamation) of the Indian Penal Code. Congress also organized a march in Morbi against Kajal’s remarks. Another Congress leader Gita Patel had also approached police against Kajal in Ahmedabad. Kajal had been in controversy in the past too when she uttered remarks hurting Muslim community in rural Junagadh. She was arrested also in that case by police but later released on bail. DeshGujarat