Pair Arrested for 'Offending Islam'
Pair Arrested for 'Offending Islam'
The editor and publisher of a top English-language Indian daily have been arrested on charges of "hurting the religious feelings" of Moslems.
The Statesman's editor Ravindra Kumar and publisher Anand Sinha were detained in Calcutta after complaints.
Moslems said they were upset with the Statesman for reproducing an article from the UK's Independent daily in its 5 February edition.
The article was entitled: "Why should I respect these oppressive religions?"
In it, the author, Johann Hari, writes: "I don't respect the idea that we should follow a 'Prophet' who at the age of 53 had sex with a nine-year old girl, and ordered the murder of whole villages of Jews because they wouldn't follow him."
Mr. Kumar and Mr. Sinha appeared in court on Wednesday and were granted bail.
Apology
Angry Moslems have been demonstrating in front of the offices of the Statesman since its republication of the article.
Police have broken up the demonstrations using baton charges several times this week.
Some Moslems close to the Jamiat-e-Ulema e Hind (The Organization of Indian Scholars, a leading Islamic group in India) later filed a complaint with police alleging that the publication had "outraged their religious feelings", which is an offense under Section 295 A of the Indian Penal Code.
Mr. Kumar has said he has already issued a public apology for reproducing the article.
"I admit it was an editorial misjudgment but it was never
intentional," Mr. Kumar said in an interview.
Expose the truth and get arrested about sums it in
India, in Europe, in Canada, etc. How long will it be before it comes to the
U.S.? That depends on how large our Moslem population gets, the larger it
becomes the better the chances these kinds of laws will be instituted.
11 Feb 2009