Cartoons have traditionally served as a medium for satire and social commentary in Bharat. However, when this art form is abused to mock religions, insult public figures with venom, and ridicule centuries-old traditions, it becomes a weapon of hate and not humour. In one such disturbing instance, the line between creativity and communal provocation has been brazenly crossed.
On May 21, a case emerged from Madhya Pradesh where cartoonist Hemant Malviya was booked for allegedly sharing a series of objectionable cartoons on social media platforms, which hurt the religious sentiments of Hindus and insulted sacred symbols and institutions of India. The Lasudia police registered a case under the relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) following a complaint filed by High Court advocate Vinay Joshi, a resident of Sudama Nagar, Indore.
According to Joshi, he was at the ISKCON temple in the Nipania area when he came across Hemant Malviya’s social media timeline. He said that, what he saw was deeply offensive and deliberately provocative- a series of cartoons targeting Hindu deities, saints, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
On examining the content, Organiser found that Hemant Malviya’s cartoons repeatedly mocked Hindu traditions, deities, and socio-political symbols. These were not political cartoons in the conventional sense, but veiled attacks meant to degrade, incite and divide the Hindu society.
In one cartoon, a wealthy man is shown holding the sacred Sengol with an idol of PM Modi seated on it which is highly objectionable. Notably, senegol is a Tamil symbol of justice and dharma that was ceremoniously placed in the Indian Parliament in 2023. Hemant Malviya reduced it to a prop and made a political caricature, thus he not only mocked an individual, but the spiritual traditions of Bharat.
Another cartoon depicted the recent Operation Sindoor launched by Indian armed forces against the terror state Pakistan in an extremely disgraceful manner. Malviya pictured that the operation was a political stunt and linked it to Congress MP Shashi Tharoor supporting PM Modi, thereby not only belittling the valour of Indian army but also indirectly mocking the deaths of innocents in Pahalgam.
Another offensive cartoon showed PM Modi standing next to former US President Donald Trump, asking if he could claim the ceasefire between India and Pakistan as his personal victory and then hold a ‘Tiranga Yatra’. This was a shameful mocking of the valour and sacrifices of Indian Armed soldiers, especially during tense cross-border escalations.
In yet another cartoon, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar was portrayed hiding behind a tree during a Pakistan-led terrorist attack.
In one of the most disturbing depictions, Malviya drew RSS swayamsevaks being injected with syringes by PM Modi — a disrespectful and baseless portrayal that insults lakhs of dedicated swayamsewaks who selflessly work for the nation and society.
The cartoonist went further by mocking Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar, depicting him as a snake lying at the feet of royal chairs, another visual that mocks the dignity of a Constitutional office.
In another deeply offensive cartoon, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was shown bowing before a man shown in tore clothes, labelled a “Naga Sadhu”.
The above cartoons are just a glimpse of Hemant Malviya’s attempts to hurt the sentiments of Hindu society, mocking hindu religious symbols, degrade Indian armed forces etc.
Meanwhile, all this was not art, this was not satire but a provocations designed to demean, divide Hindu society. Such misuse of art, digital platforms under the guise of freedom of expression is dangerous.
Following Joshi’s complaint, a case has been registered under the following sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS)-– Section 196 (promoting enmity between different groups), 299 (outrage religious feelings), 302 (acts of wounding religious feelings), 352 (breach of peace), 353 (2) (statements conducing to public mischief).
