TIRUNELVELI: Actor Kamal Haasan has been asked to appear for a case against him for allegedly hurting Hindu religious sentiments. The Valliyoor Judicial Magistrate court in Tirunelveli district on Friday ordered the actor to appear before it on May 5 on a case filed against him for comparing ‘The Game of Dice’ portion of the Hindu epic ‘Mahabharatham’ with the oppression of women and increasing sexual assault cases on women and film actresses.
Kamal Haasan recently participated in a television interview with a Tamil channel, in which he was asked by the anchor about his views on crimes against women. Responding to this, Kamal Hassan said, “Is there anything more disgusting than oppressing a woman. On one side, we boast that we are developed and on the other side women are being dominated in the name of pride. It seems like we haven’t moved on from the ‘Game of Dice’ incident of Mahabharatham.”
He was referring to the portion of the epic in which the Pandava brothers stake their wife Draupadi in a gamble with their cousins and arch enemies, the Kauravas.
Responding to an another question about the increasing number of sexual assaults against film actresses, the actor said, “Due to the surge in the number of news media, these issues are now being highlighted. I won’t say that these issues shouldn’t be focused upon, but we should perceive the underlying cause for these issues. Our country is the one where people revere the Mahabharatham in which a woman was presented as the stake on which a bet was placed during the game of dice. So, it is not surprising to see the crimes against women in this country.”
Stating that his remarks had hurt the sentiments of Hindus, a petition was been filed by V Aathinatha Sundaram, President of Anjugramam Traders' Association from Pazhavoor at the Valliyoor judicial magistrate court recently, demanding legal action against Kamal Haasan.
Aathinatha Sundaram, in his petition said, "Mahabharatham serves as a life lesson for lakhs of Hindus. It is hurtful when Kamal Haasan has compared the Mahabharatham with the sexual assaults against actresses. As it is punishable to hurt others’ religious sentiments, suitable action should be taken against him."
Hearing the petition on Friday, Judicial Magistrate M Senthil Kumar ordered Kamal Haasan to appear before the court on May 5. The summons will be served to him shortly.