Case Against Kerala Professor For "Godse Saved India" Comment On Facebook

The Kerala police on Saturday registered a case against a woman professor of the National Institute of Technology-Calicut (NIT) for her Facebook comment "expressing pride" in Nathuram Godse for assassinating Mahatma Gandhi and thus "saving India".

Multiple complaints were lodged against Professor A Shaija in several police stations in the city by various student organisations, including Students' Federation of India, Kerala Students Union and MSF, following which an FIR was registered against her.

Indian Penal Code Section 153 (wantonly giving provocation with the intent to cause riot) was invoked against the professor.

Complaints were filed against her at the Kunnamangalam and Nadakkavu police stations, among others.

Shaija, a senior faculty member of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at NIT here on January 30 posted a comment on Facebook saying "Proud of Godse for saving India".

She had commented on a post by a lawyer, Krishna Raj, who posted Godse's photograph saying "Hindu Mahasabha activist Nathuram Vinayak Godse, a hero of many in India".

A senior police official of the district told PTI that a case has been registered against the professor and the investigation has begun.

However, as the matter became controversial, the professor deleted her comment.

The NIT has been marred by controversy for the past few weeks after a section of students celebrated the inauguration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on January 22.

A student named Vyshakh, who reportedly protested against the celebration was suspended by the college following a brawl between two sections of the students.

The action against Vyshakh was halted on February 2 after he approached the appellate authority in the institution.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)