'His Tongue Should be Chopped Off': BJP, Allies Rage Over Kamal Haasan's 'Godse a Terrorist' Remark

New Delhi: KT Rajendra Balaji, a leader of BJP's Tamil Nadu ally AIADMK, on Monday said that Kamal Haasan's tongue should be chopped off for his remarks on Hindu terror. The leader added that the comments were to gain minority votes.

"His tongue should be cut of...he has said (free India's first extremist) was a Hindu. Extremism has no religion, neither Hindu nor Muslim nor Christian," said Balaji, who is state's dairy development minister.

The Makkal Needhi Maiyam founder had stoked a controversy by saying that free India's first "extremist was a Hindu" — Nathuram Godse who killed Mahatma Gandhi. The comments drew sharp reaction from the state BJP, which slammed him for indulging in "divisive politics".

The BJP also filed a complaint with the EC against Haasan for his remarks, saying they were made at a village in Aravakurichi, which was a "thickly-populated" Muslim area. "The intention of Kamal Haasan is to create religious unrest in society and create communal tension in the Constituency and all over the state," the party said.

BJP leader and Union minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the actor-turned-politician was following the Congress and Communists in showing Hindus "in a bad light to appease minorities".

"It proves that he does not understand the difference between an assassin and a terrorist. An assassin is very different from a terrorist. Therefore if only he goes through the entire history and also follows up on the trial of Mahatma Gandhi he would know the difference," Sitharaman told a press conference. She added, "He is in a hurry to prove that he follows the same line of appeasing minorities for the sake of his newly launched venture."

Earlier too, Haasan had triggered a row, when in November 2017, he took potshots at what he termed as "Hindu extremism", which drew condemnation from the BJP and Hindu outfits.

Aravakurichi is one of the four Assembly constituencies where bypolls are scheduled on May 19. MNM has fielded S Mohanraj from this segment.

The Congress and Dravidar Kazhagam, a rationalist organisation floated by Dravidian veteran, the late E V R Periyar, however, came out in support of the MNM leader. TNCC President KS Alagiri said he concurred with Haasan "1000 percent", while DK chief K Veeramani said Godse trained with RSS.