Actor Kiku Sharda was granted bail hours after he was arrested in Mumbai by police from Kaithal, Haryana, on Wednesday morning for allegedly mimicking Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh.
However, Sharda will be questioned by cops in connection with a separate case at Fatehabad, filed against him by a dera follower.
After the arrest, the actor said he didn’t mean to hurt the feelings of any community. “I’m an artist who is given a role, a get-up and told what to do. I’ve already apologised. I did not mean to hurt anyone’s religious sentiments. I am sorry, I was just following a script. Usually, if an objectionable word comes out while performing, it’s edited by the channel. This is also the channel’s responsibility.”
Singh, for his part, gracefully accepted Sharda’s apology. “I was busy shooting OnlineGurukul; just got to know, devotees are hurt due to Kiku’s action. If he has apologised, no complaint from my side,” he tweeted.
I was busy shooting OnlineGurukul; just got to know, devotees are hurt due to Kiku’s action.If he has apologized, no complaint from my side
— GURMEET RAM RAHIM (@Gurmeetramrahim) January 13, 2016
Kaithal police had picked up Sharda, best known for his role as Palak in ‘Comedy Nights With Kapil’, from Goregaon in Mumbai at 1 am on Wednesday, following a complaint that his act had hurt the sentiments of Singh’s followers. The same afternoon, Kaithal chief judicial magistrate Nandita Kaushik remanded him in judicial custody for 14 days, and then allowed bail on a personal bond of Rs1 lakh.
Actor Kiku Sharda who was arrested for mimicking Baba Gurmeet Ram Rahim, has been released on surety bond of Rs 1 lakh
— ANI (@ANI_news) January 13, 2016
Kaithal superintendent of police (SP) Krishan Murari told HT that Sharda’s lawyers applied for early hearing in the case, which the court accepted.
A case has been registered against Sharda under Section 295-A (malicious act intended to outrage religious feelings) of the Indian Penal Code at the Civil Lines police station in Kaithal district.
Dera follower Uday Singh and a few others had lodged a criminal complaint against the actor at Kaithal on January 1, alleging that Sharda had made fun of their leader on the December 27 edition of ‘Comedy Nights With Kapil’. Murari said that as many as eight people, including actors, have been booked.
Fatehabad superintendent of police OP Narwal denied re-arresting Sharda, stating that an SHO is just heading there to take his statement in the second case.
Online Source