AHMEDABAD: An activist has approached the Election Commission with a complaint that a video clip circulating on social media platforms was meant to spread hatred against Muslims "to polarise votes" in poll-bound Gujarat.
Advocate Govind Parmar of Human Rights Law Network has written to the Chief Electoral Officer of Gujarat, the cyber crime cell of Ahmedabad police, and the Election Commission with a request to ban the video clip and take action against those responsible for its creation and circulation.
The 1.15 minute-long clip, which begins in Gujarati, shows a girl hurrying back to home through a deserted locality with azaan (a Muslim call to prayer) playing in the background. The clip ends with a line that reads, "Our vote, our safety."
Nobody has claimed responsibility for making and circulating the video clip.
In his letter, Parmar said the video attempts to spread hatred by whipping up fear towards the Muslim community with an attempt to polarise the votes.
"We request you to ban this video as well as other similar videos that attempt to spread hatred towards the minority community and also order the cyber crime in Ahmedabad to launch an investigation by top officials after registering an offence against all those shown in the video as well as those who created the video," he said.
He also sought action against the persons behind the video clip under section 153(A) - promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion - of the Indian Penal Code and relevant sections of Information Technology (IT) Act.