Despite Jwalit Mehta and Nipun Bhatt leading the rowdy mob that burnt a copy of Kamasutra at the well-known Latitude (earlier Crossword) book shop on the Rajpath road in Ahmedabad; they do not figure in the FIR filed by a local police station.
A mob had barged into the shop and burnt a Kamasutra copy warning the owners that the entire shop would be burnt down if they ever stock anti-Hindu books” like the Kamasutra.
More than 36 hours of the incident, the Shaherkotda police filed an FIR against four people who were a part of the mob conveniently not naming the two who reportedly led and instigated the group. According to the police, the rowdies belong to Bajrang Dal group.
This group had set Vatyasana’s celebrated treatise Kama Sutra on fire, late Saturday evening.
The FIR was filed at least 36 hours later at the Shehar Kotda police station. The book shop owner refused to file an FIR.
The FIR has been filed against four persons Bhupendra Manibhai Patni, Mahendra Patni, Kapil and Mehul. The Bajrang Dal members from North Gujarat were led by Jwalit Mehta and Nipun Bhatt.
The Bajrang Dal opposed the Kama Sutra book because it allegedly portrayed Hindu deities in an “obscene and vulgar” manner. They burnt a copy of the book outside the Latitude bookstore near Rajpath Club.
While burning the book, the group shouted “Jai Shri Ram” and “Har Har Mahadev” slogans and videos were shared on social media.
In a related development, representatives of the Latitude chain said they had exhausted all copies of the book. “We do not have any more copies of the said book in our store now. We are aware of the protests that took place outside one of our retail stores in Ahmedabad. We have not lodged any complaint with the police,” a representative of the store told mediapersons.
According to information received, the Bajrang Dal activist said, “We went to a bookstall and protested by burning the book after getting information that there were obscene pictures of Hindu gods and goddesses in a book called Kama Sutra.”
In a related development, representatives of the Latitude chain said they had exhausted all copies of the book. “We do not have any more copies of the said book in our store now. We are aware of the protests that took place outside one of our retail stores in Ahmedabad. We have not lodged any complaint with the police,” a representative of the store told media persons.
According to information received, the Bajrang Dal activist said, “We went to a bookstall and protested by burning the book after getting information that there were obscene pictures of Hindu gods and goddesses in a book called Kama Sutra.”
Members of the Dal have warned the bookstore from stocking books of any anti-Hindu objectionable matter in the future.
