The Tamil Nadu police Tuesday filed an FIR against actor-politician Kamal Haasan for his controversial "free India's first extremist was a Hindu" remarks referring to Nathuram Godse, as saffron organisations moved the courts in Delhi against the actor-politician.
Makkal Needhi Maiyam and a Minister who wanted the actor's tongue to be chopped off for his remarks entered into a war of words, even as the MNM chief found support from Asaduddin Owaisi, the firebrand AIMIM leader.
"The one who killed Mahatma Gandhi, whom we regard as Father of the Nation, what do we call him? We call him Mahatma or 'rakshas' (demon)?Call him terrorist or assassin?" he said.
"If not calling the person who killed Bapu as terrorist, what else will you call him?" he told reporters at Hyderabad.
Stoking a controversy, Haasan had said on Sunday that "free India's first extremist was a Hindu", referring to Nathuram Godse who killed Mahatma Gandhi.
"I am not saying this because this is Muslim-dominated area, but I am saying this before a statue of Gandhi. Free India's first extremist was a Hindu, his name is Nathuram Godse. There it (extremism, apparently) starts," he said in bypoll-bound Aravakurichi.
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BJP and AIADMK condemned him for his remarks, though Congress and rationalist outfit Dravidar Kazhagam backed him.
Police in Aravakurichi in Karur district filed the FIR under sections 153A and 295A of the Indian Penal Code,which deal with 'outraging religious feelings' and 'promoting enmity between different groups', respectively.
A Karur police release also warned of stringent action against those inciting violence in the name of religion, caste, language and race.
In Delhi, two separate cases were filed against Haasan.
Moving a PIL before the bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice A J Bhambhani of the Delhi High Court, BJP leader Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay sought directions to the EC to "restrict" misuse of religion for poll gains.
Upadhyay, also a lawyer, alleged Haasan "deliberately" made the statement in the presence of a Muslim majority crowd for electoral gains.
The petition contended this was "clearly a corrupt practice under Representation of the People Act (RPA) 1951."
A Hindu Sena activist also moved the court, seeking Haasan's prosecution for allegedly hurting religious sentiments by terming Godse as a "Hindu extremist."
In a statement, MNM general secretary A Arunachalam said that as an elected representative and a minister, Bhalaji had broken "the promise he made when he took oath as minister."
"So he must be removed from his post immediately."
However, Bhalaji hit out at the demand and sought to know what violation of oath he had committed and if he was "speaking ill of a particular faith or promoting another."