DJ Detained For 'Hurting' Gujarat Chief Minister's Reputation Through Spoof Video

Police have detained a 30-year-old disc jockey (DJ) in Vadodara city of Gujarat on the charge of harming state Chief Minister Vijay Rupani's reputation by making and uploading a video by using a part of the latter's past speech, officials said on Friday.

The accused was identified as Pradeep Kahar, a resident of Kahar Mohalla in Dandiya Bazaar locality of Vadodara, they said.

He was detained on Thursday by Vadodara city crime branch under IPC section 469, which deals with forgery for purpose of harming reputation, a release issued by the police said.

Right now, he is kept under detention and will be formally arrested once his coronavirus report comes negative, it said.

Kahar is a local DJ and uses the name ''DJ Adee'' on various social media platforms, including on Facebook.

"He is accused of making and circulating a fake electronic document using some portion of the CM's original speech with an intention to harm the reputation and position of the CM," the release said, quoting the FIR.

Since it is an act of defamation, the Vadodara city crime branch, upon learning about Kahar's act from social media, detained him, it added.

"Kahar is a DJ and created a video using CM's speech on potatoes grown in Banaskantha. He also circulated the video on various social media platforms," Deputy Commissioner of Police, Crime Branch, Jaydeepsinh Jadeja, said.

In his speech, the chief minister had tried to say that potatoes grown by farmers of Banaskantha will get more price if sold to fast food giant McDonald's for making French fries sold at their outlets.

While Kahar did not alter the original words, he cut some portions of the speech and put it together to make a spoof video of the CM, police said.