Feb 23, 2022: According to a report by Al Jazeera, police in the southern Indian state of Karnataka have arrested actor and activist Chetan Kumar for a tweet criticizing one of the judges hearing petitions against the hijab ban in schools.

The arrest sparked outrage online.

The police action comes a week after Kumar, a US citizen, questioned in a Twitter post whether Justice Krishna Dixit has “the clarity required” to oversee the hijab row case after previously making “disturbing comments” in a rape case.

The tweet from the actor was about two years ago and referred to Dixit granting pre-arrest bail to the accused rapist after claiming that the woman’s statement was “a bit difficult to believe”.

“The explanation offered by her that after the perpetration of the act she was tired and fell asleep is unbecoming of an Indian woman,” the judge said in 2020, adding “that is not the way our women react when they are ravished”.

Kumar’s wife Megha conducted a Facebook live on Tuesday evening after his arrest and said no one informed the family about the arrest or the reason, the Hindustan Times reported.

This is a tweet I wrote nearly two years ago regarding a Karnataka High Court decision

Justice Krishna Dixit made such disturbing comments in a rape case

Now this same judge is determining whether #hijabs are acceptable or not in govt schools

Does he have the clarity required? pic.twitter.com/Vg8VRXmJTW

— Chetan Kumar Ahimsa / ಚೇತನ್ ಅಹಿಂಸಾ (@ChetanAhimsa) February 16, 2022

The actor was arrested by police for his tweet under Indian Penal Code article that states, “Intent to incite a class or community to commit offence against another class or community” and for “intentionally insulting, thereby giving provocation to any person to break public peace”

The ban on hijab in Karnataka state colleges has sparked a major battle amid growing fears that attacks on Muslim symbols and practices are part of the larger Hindu far-right agenda to impose majority values on minorities. A three-judge panel in the Karnataka High Court is hearing various petitions challenging the ban. Earlier this month, hijab-wearing Muslim students were barred from entering schools and colleges across the state.

Following Kumar’s arrest, many on Twitter condemned the authorities’ move and demanded the actor’s immediate release.

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