Kasuri’s book launch: Sena throw black paint on Sudheendra Kulkarni

An Indian activist on Monday accused far-right protesters of dousing him in black ink over the launch of a former Pakistani foreign minister’s book, in the latest apparent attack on free speech in the country.

“The Shiv Sainiks attacked me outside my home”, Kulkarni said, alleging that eight to 10 Sena activists were involved, NDTV quoted him as saying.

Earlier in the day, Sena activists allegedly smeared black ink on the face Kulkarni.

Sudheendra Kulkarni, who is scheduled to moderate a discussion at the launch of Pakistan’s former foreign minister’s book Neither a Hawk, nor a Dove, said the incident took place in his vehicle when he was en route to his office.

The Sena, which shares power with the BJP in Maharashtra, has written to the director of Worli’s Nehru Centre, the launch venue, to cancel the show because of the Pakistan connection. “We won’t be cowed down by such events and the book launch will happen as planned”, he said and soon after was present at a media interaction along with Kasuri while still drenched in paint.

Speaking to the news agency, Shiv Sena MLA Sunil Shinde said, “Uddhav Thackeray spoke to the Chief minister and have decided that protest against Sudheendra Kulkarni will be called off”. The first is that the Sena’s goons who descended on former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s close aide Sudheendra Kulkarni this morning and blackened his face led an assault on India’s democracy and its inherent culture of tolerance.

The writers said they were also protesting the government’s failure to condemn the lynching last month of a Muslim man suspected of eating beef.

Claiming that Sena has no “political agenda” behind opposing the book launch event, Raut claimed while Khurshid was Foreign Minister of Pakistan, he was responsible for bringing all extremist anti-India organisations together to “suit their Kashmir agenda”.

CPI leader D Raja said the Sena should not resort to such politics which is not in line with the Constitution.

Last week, the Shiv Sena threatened the staging of two concerts by renowned Pakistani ghazal maestro Ghulam Ali that were subsequently cancelled in Mumbai and Pune. I believe I am doing a right thing.

He began by thanking Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis for excellent security at book launch.