According to Hindustan Times, Bollywood actor and BJP parliamentarian Paresh Rawal found himself in the middle of a Twitter storm on Monday after he said that writer Arundhati Roy be tied to an army jeep, suggesting she be used in a manner similar to a Kashmiri man in the Valley last month.
“Instead of tying stone pelter on the army jeep tie Arundhati Roy!”, the Lok Sabha member from Gujarat tweeted late on Sunday. It wasn’t clear what context he was speaking in.
Instead of tying stone pelter on the army jeep tie Arundhati Roy !
— Paresh Rawal (@SirPareshRawal) May 21, 2017
His comments drew condemnation from many users on Twitter, some seeing it as an attempt to incite violence by an elected public representative.
@SirPareshRawal Am deeply moved by your empathy that brings every character to life in movies. But I'm shocked by your ability to be so violent with words!
— Priyanka Borpujari (@Pri_Borpujari) May 21, 2017
The April incident in which a Kashmiri man was tied to an army jeep, ostensibly as a human shield, sparked outrage in Kashmir. The army launched a court of inquiry against a Major over the incident.
Rawal also endorsed a tweet by another user that suggested journalist Sagarika Ghose be treated similarly.
We have a wide variety of choices ! https://t.co/rpciWyhLha
— Paresh Rawal (@SirPareshRawal) May 21, 2017
Roy is an award-winning writer whose views on Kashmiri separatism has been a cause for controversy. She has also been a strong critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who rose from the state where Rawal is now an MP.
“Wonderful sir, too good. You really are a model parliamentarian,” tweeted Sagarika Ghose in a seemingly sarcastic vein, quoting Rawal’s tweet.
Wonderful sir, too good. You really are a model parliamentarian https://t.co/rPjPWRYC3Q
— Sagarika Ghose (@sagarikaghose) May 22, 2017
Ghose is among Indian personalities routinely targeted by trolls supporting the Bharatiya Janata Party for her political views. Roy is not on Twitter.
Rawal’s comments also drew support from many Twitter users, with some chipping in with more names they would like to see treated in that manner.
