Following a complaint made against him by the BJP Haryana unit’s IT department head, controversial stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui has been dropped from an impending three-day comedy concert later this month.
Mr. Faruqui had insulted Hindu deities divine to his faith, and the stand-up comedian was consistently doing so on open venues such as live performances and events, according to Arun Yadav, IT department head, Haryana BJP, in his complaint to the Gurugram police.
“His actions have caused me to lose trust in Hinduism.” Mr. Yadav’s complaint, referring to some of the films of the stand-up comedian purportedly ridiculing Hindu deities, stated, “This is purposely done to stir religious disharmony.” He also made a copy of the complaint available on his Twitter account.
Mr. Faruqui was scheduled to appear at the Gurgaon Comedy Festival, which would take place from December 17 to 19 at Gurugram’s Airia Mall. The Entertainment Factory, the event’s organisers, have also removed his name from promotional materials. Many messages criticising the stand-up comedian’s participation were also circulating on social media, according to reports.
A day after his scheduled engagement in Bengaluru was cancelled, Mr. Faruqui intimated in a tweet on November 28 that he might not conduct any further events. The organisers had been “advised” by the police to cancel the event due to probable law and order issues. His gigs have already been cancelled in other places for identical reasons.
