‘Bunch of goons can censor free speech’: Shashi Tharoor on Kunal Kamra show
Kunal Kamra was scheduled to hold a show in Gurugram but it was cancelled amid threats from the right-wing groups.
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday tweeted a sharp rebuke over the recent cancellation of stand-up comic Kunal Kamra’s show. The 33-year-old’s show in Gurugram was cancelled last week amid threats of protests by members of right-wing outfits Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal against the event.
Kunal Kamra was scheduled to perform at Studio XO Bar in Sector 29 on the evening of September 17 and September 18, as per an Instagram post. In a memo submitted to deputy commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav, however, members of right-wing authorities had sought denial of permission for the shows, claiming that Kamra “mocks Hindu gods and goddesses”. His comments at the show could spark tension in the city, they had claimed.
Tharoor is among several opposition who have criticised the cancellation of the show. “It’s awful that @kunalkamra88’s show was canceled, just like @virdas & @munawar0018 earlier. What’s our country coming to when a bunch of goons can intimidate organisers & censor free speech? The police ought to act whenever a show is threatened. (sic),” the Congress leader tweeted.
Last month, stand-up comic Munawar Faruqui’s Delhi show was canceled. Vir Das had earlier faced flak for his “two Indias comments”.
Meanwhile, Kamra, who often faces social media trolls, wrote an open letter on Sunday in a dare to the VHP. “I can proudly say Jai Shri Sita-Ram and Radha-Krishan. If you are truly Indians, have the guts to write Godse murdabad. Else, we will consider you anti-Hindu and anti-Indian,” Kamra wrote in his letter. His letter drew praise from Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra.
