Mangaluru: Activist booked for derogatory post on Facebook

MANGALURU: City police arrested a social activist on the charges of preventing police personnel from discharging their duty, and posting a derogatory post on Facebook.
According to police, the incident took place on Friday, when a team of police personnel had gone to hand over a notice to Sunil Bajilakeri, after a complaint was filed against him, over a derogatory post on Facebook, at Bajpe police station. Sunil allegedly created a scene, and prevented the police from discharging their duty. A case in this regard was registered at Urwa police station under IPC Section 353 ( assault or use of criminal force to deter a public servant from discharge of his duty).
Earlier, during the day, a case was booked against Sunil Bajilakeri, after he allegedly posted a morphed picture of a pregnant woman, with the head of a cheetah that had arrived from Namibia, on Facebook, with a caption in Kannada, asking when the baby shower will be conducted for the pregnant cheetah. The Bajpe police had booked a case under various IPC sections, and Section 6 of the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act.
City police commissioner N Shashi Kumar said that Sunil was produced before a magistrate, and was released on bail.
Arrest condemned
The DYFI Dakshina Kannada district committee has condemned the arrest of Sunil Bajilakeri.
“Social activist Sunil Bajilakeri’s statements against the misrule of the BJP government in Karnataka, questioning the illegality and injustices perpetrated by local MLAs, through his writings and satirical pictures on social media, were attracting the people’s attention. Both the central and state governments have been suppressing activists by sending them to prison. The BJP government is acting like a dictator, and trying to divert people’s attention, to hide their anti-people policies,” stated DYFI district president B K Imthiyaz and secretary Santhosh Bajal.