BENGALURU: The Vidhana Soudha police on Saturday registered an FIR against an unknown person for allegedly issuing a life threat to the Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court over the judgment on the hijab issue. The Tamil Nadu police, meanwhile, have arrested the accused, Covai R Rahmatullah, a resident of Coimbatore, after the video went viral on social media and local news channels.
The full bench of the high court, headed by the Chief Justice, had delivered the verdict last Tuesday. Following a threat perception, security for the judges has been reviewed and heightened.
A senior police officer said that based on a complaint by advocate Sudha Katwa, quoting a video clip, the police have booked the accused for criminal intimidation, creating enmity between two groups and also for breach of public peace. “We will transfer the case to the Madurai police as the incident took place in Tamil Nadu and they will investigate further. It is said that Rahmatullah, belonging to an Islamist organisation named Tamil Nadu Thowheed Jamath (TNTJ), delivered the speech on March 17 an event and held out an open threat in Tamil that if judges get killed over the hijab case verdict, then, they will themselves be responsible for it,” the officer said.
Meanwhile, cases were booked against two other members of the outfit in Tamil Nadu. Speaking to TNIE, Sudha Katwa said a representation has also been submitted to the Registrar General of the Karnataka High court by advocate S Umapathi, seeking action against the accused to preserve the integrity and independence of the judiciary.
“The Registrar General has assured us of taking action in regard and later, we also filed a complaint with the Vidhana Soudha police,” she said.