A court in Maharashtra on Thursday granted Marathi actress Ketaki Chitale bail in a case filed against her under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in Navi Mumbai in 2020. Ketaki, who has been in jail for more than a month, will continue to remain in jail since she is currently in jail in another case.
The Maharashtra Police had arrested Ketaki last month for sharing an offensive Facebook post on NCP chief Shard Pawar.
According to news agency PTI, Ketaki’s lawyer Yogesh Deshpande said that Thane’s Additional Sessions Judge AS Bhagwat had granted the actress bail in the Atrocities Act case. One Swapnil Jagtap from the Ambedkar Yuva Sangh had filed a complaint against Ketaki in 2020 for her objectionable Facebook post. This had prompted the police in Navi Mumbai to register a case against the actor.
While the actress may have been granted bail in that case, she will have to spend time in jail since she was arrested last month for her Facebook post on Pawar.
As many as 20 FIRs have been filed against the 29-year-old actress after she shared an offensive post about Pawar, whose party is an alliance partner in the Maharashtra government.
Ketaki was booked under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 500 (defamation), 501 (printing or engraving matter known to be defamatory), 505 (2) (making, publishing or circulating any statement, rumour or report promoting enmity, hatred or ill will between classes), 153 A (spreading disharmony among people).
Ketaki’s Facebook post in Marathi had accused ‘Pawar’ of being jealous of Brahmins and how he must now wait for hell. “You are jealous of Brahmins. Who are you? You are a mosquito. Your sins are filled. Shut up! Otherwise, there will be chaos…. Your mouth is crooked,” she had written.
