Ahmedabad man arrested for sharing ‘distorted’ video of PM Modi’s reservation speech: Cops

A BJP worker, Hiren Jadav, filed a complaint against the video, which continues to be online.

Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Branch traced to Mahendra Dodiya (centre), a Facebook account that purportedly shared a video where Modi can be seen reading out former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's views on affirmative action.

A 43-year-old man was Tuesday arrested in Ahmedabad for allegedly sharing on Facebook a distorted video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent speech on reservations.

Mahendra Dodiya (43), a resident of Odhav in Ahmedabad, has been booked for forgery, public mischief and promoting enmity between different groups after the Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Branch traced to him a Facebook account that purportedly shared a video where Modi can be seen reading out former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s views on affirmative action. In the speech, Modi had read out from a letter by the former PM in which he had stated: “‘I dislike any kind of reservation, more particularly in services”. However, the video, it has been alleged, was edited to make it appear as Modi’s own views on reservation.

A BJP worker, Hiren Jadav, filed a complaint against the video, which continues to be online. According to the FIR filed at the Ahmedabad Cyber Crime branch against an ‘unknown person’ on February 9, a Facebook account named ‘Solanki Kaushik Bhai’, who is also the owner of SJ Creations, a YouTube channel, “deliberately spread false rumours about reservation, created tension and tarnished the image of the Prime Minister for political gains”.

“In the speech delivered by the Prime Minister in the Rajya Sabha, he was reading a letter of Nehruji. The accused shared a part of the speech online. He said he received the video from someone else. Our investigation is ongoing,” said Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Branch Police Inspector DB Patel.

“The complainant is a BJP worker. It appears the accused was earlier affiliated with the AAP and had resigned later after he had sought a ward ticket (for the municipal corporation election) but was not given one,” Patel added.

Dodiya has been charged under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 153 (A) (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence), 469 (forgery for the purpose of harming reputation) and 505 (statements conducing public mischief).

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