The news of Income Tax raids at the premises linked to filmmaker Anurag Kashyap and actor Taapsee Pannu has not come as a surprise to netizens as they quickly linked the development to their recent utterances and actions against the government and its supporters. Not too long ago, Taapsee’s tweet slamming celebrities such as Akshay Kumar, Sachin Tendulkar, Ajay Devgn and Lata Mangeshkar on the farmers’ protest had gone viral. While Kashyap had hit headlines last year when he turned up outside the office of Arnab Goswami’s Republic TV with a pair of slippers.
Taapsee’s viral tweet had read, “If one tweet rattles your unity, one joke rattles your faith or one show rattles your religious belief then it’s you who has to work on strengthening your value system not become ‘propaganda teacher’ for others.”
This tweet had simply gone viral with nearly three lakhs likes and more than one lakh shares on the microblogging site.
This was in response to Indian celebrities near-identical tweet parroting the government line to counter prominent international names such as pop icon Rihanna, climate activist Greta Thunberg and US Vice President’s niece Meena Harris on the farmers’ protest.
RJD leader Tejashwi leader said, “They first employed IT, CBI, ED to conduct raids on vocal & upright political rivals for their character assassination. Now Nazi govt is chasing social activists, journalists & artists to threaten them against calling spade a spade. Condemnable Act!”
Chappal leke Arnab ke office gaya tha anurag… ab khud chappal pehne ke sadak pe ghumega
— saurabh khangar (@saurabh_khangar) March 3, 2021
if you talk against govt, be ready to welcome I-T Dept and ED to your home. Otherwise tweet the message passed by BJP IT cell and Welcome to Naya India !
— ಅಪ್ಪು (@Appubyresh) March 3, 2021
If one tweet rattles your unity, one joke rattles your faith or one show rattles your religious belief, then it’s you who has to work on strengthening your value system not become propaganda teachers for others: Taapsee Pannu
— Hartosh Singh Bal (@HartoshSinghBal) March 3, 2021
More recently, Taapsee had reacted with disgust after it was reported that Chief Justice of India SA Bobde had asked a rape accused if he wanted to marry his alleged victim. Taapsee had tweeted, ‘Did someone ask the girl this question ? If she wants to marry her rapist !!!??? Is that a question !!!??? This is the solution or a punishment ? Plain simple DISGUST.”
As for Kashyap, also a fierce critic of the Narendra Modi government, he had accompanied comedian Kunal Kamra with a set of framed slippers to present them to Goswami. The filmmaker had to return without success since he was not allowed to meet the controversial anchor, who has lately been targeting top Bollywood stars, particularly Salman Khan for his silence over the death of Sushant Singh Rajput.
