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A comedy club in Mumbai was attacked after comedian Kunal Kamra joked about former Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, calling him a “gaddar”, meaning traitor, for switching political sides in 2022.
Following the performance, about 20 supporters of Shinde's Shiv Sena party stormed the club and vandalised the property. Ten people, including the youth group leader, were arrested after the incident.
Maharashtra's chief minister, Devendra Fadnavis, acknowledged the importance of stand-up comedy but stated that freedom of expression has limits.
"As far as I know, it is not against the law to poke fun at our leaders and the circus that is our political system," Kamra refused to apologise, asserting the legality of his joke.
Shiv Sena filed defamation charges against him, and local authorities deemed the club illegal, beginning to tear down part of the building. The club expressed shock at the violence and announced it would close until a safer environment for free expression could be established.
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