New Delhi: Delhi AAP chief Saurabh Bharadwaj, along with party leaders Sanjay Jha and Adil Ahmed, has been booked for allegedly hurting the religious sentiments of the Christian community through an improper depiction of Santa Claus in a political video, police said on Thursday.
The FIR pertains to a video posted on the social media accounts of the leaders on December 17 and 18, in which Santa Claus is shown wearing a gas mask and depicted as having “fainted.” The video was linked to a political skit on Delhi’s air quality and was shot in the Connaught Place area of Central Delhi.
The leaders have been booked under Section 302 of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), which carries a punishment of up to one year. The provision penalises intentionally wounding religious feelings through words, gestures, sounds, or objects, with possible imprisonment, fine, or both, to safeguard religious harmony and free speech.
The FIR was filed on the complaint of advocate Kushboo George, who alleged that the video portrayed Santa Claus in a derogatory manner. According to the complaint, the depiction of Santa fainting and falling on the road was deliberate and intended to hurt the sentiments of Christians. The complaint stated that the act mocked the sanctity of Saint Nicholas and Christmas, and was carried out maliciously during the holy Advent season leading up to Christmas.
Earlier, Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva also criticised the AAP leaders for using Santa Claus as a prop and demanded a public apology.
With IANS inputs