Kunal Kamra case: After cutting short vacation, banker told not to go to Khar police station for questioning | Mumbai news
The Khar police have denied summoning audience members who attended comedian Kunal Kamra’s controversial stand-up special in February for questioning after reports surfaced that a Kharghar-based man was forced to cut short his vacation to Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Hours after Kamra shared a report about the 46-year-old man’s ordeal on social media, an officer at the Khar police station denied that they had issued a summons notice to the banker or any other audience member but confirmed they were talking to people who were present at the stand-up show.
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“We are investigating the charges against Kamra by talking to people present at the show, even though we have the video recording of the entire show,” said the officer, who requested anonymity as they aren’t authorised to speak to the media.
The show, recorded on February 2 in Khar, catapulted into a major political controversy after Kamra released it on YouTube and social media last month. In the video, the comedian is seen taking a satirical jab allegedly aimed at deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde.
The police registered a defamation case against Kamra on March 24 based on a Shiv Sena leader’s complaint. Apart from Kamra, the police also summoned more than 20 witnesses present at The Habitat studio at Hotel Unicontinental in Khar, where the show was recorded. The witnesses include members of the audience, technicians, and employees of the hotel.
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The Kharghar-based banker, one of the audience members, said the police repeatedly called him on his mobile last week while he was on vacation. He added that the police did not believe him when he informed them that he was out of town. On March 29, the man allegedly received a written notice asking him to appear before police sub-inspector Vaibhav Katkar, the investigating officer of the case against Kamra. The notice threatened the man with legal action if he failed to visit the Khar police station by noon on March 30, he said.
“Fearing arrest, I had to cut short my trip and return to Mumbai,” said the banker. He added that the investigating officer also asked him if he had shot a video of the show and uploaded it on social media and if he had altered or edited it before posting it.
However, on Wednesday, the man said the police informed him that he didn’t need to appear for questioning anymore. This was after Kamra shared a report on X about the man being forced to cut short his vacation. “I am deeply sorry for the inconvenience that attending my show has caused to you,” he wrote in his X post. “Please email me so that I can schedule your next vacation anywhere you’d like in India.”
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The police have issued three summons to Kamra, who lives in Puducherry, to appear for questioning. The comedian has secured anticipatory bail from the Madras High Court till April 7. Sanjeev Dhumal, senior police inspector with the Khar police, said Kamra would be provided protection when he comes to Mumbai for questioning after members of the Shiv Sena threatened to beat him up if he was spotted in the city.
Several Shiv Sena workers vandalised The Habitat studio in Khar after Kamra released a video of his show online and held protests across the state against him. Shiv Sena lawmakers also raised the matter during the recently concluded budget session of the state legislature.
During the show, Kamra didn’t directly refer to Shinde in a parody song he had sung about a “gaddaar” (traitor) in Maharashtra politics. However, Shiv Sena members believe it targeted Shinde, whose 2022 rebellion against then-chief minister Uddhav Thackeray led to a split in the party and the collapse of the latter’s government.
