Seer makes controversial remarks on Muslims’ right to vote

Artist Sridhara Naik performs at a protest by the Bharatiya Kisan Sangh in Bengaluru on Tuesday.
| Photo Credit: K. MURALI KUMAR

In a controversial statement, a clip of which has now gone viral, Chandrashekhar Swami, seer of Vishwa Vokkaliga Mahasamsthana Mutt, said: “Muslims should be stripped of their right to vote, for others to live peacefully”. 

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He was speaking at a protest organised by the Bharatiya Kisan Sangh, a Sangh Parivar affiliate, against the alleged “takeover of farm land by the waqf board” at Freedom Park on Tuesday, November 27, 2024. 

He said taking over the land in the name of waqf was condemnable and demanded the abolition of waqf boards across the country. “Politicians do these things for elections. If our country has to get a good name, we should bring a law that strips Muslims of their voting rights. They will then be in their place and the rest of us can live peacefully,” he said.