• Source:JND
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Stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra on Saturday skipped another summons issued by the Mumbai Police in connection with a case registered against him for his "traitor" (gaddar) joke on Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde earlier last month. This is the third time since the controversy erupted that Mumbai Police had called Kamra for questioning in the case.

An FIR was filed against Kunal Kamra at the Khar police station on a complaint by Shiv Sena MLA Murji Patel for allegedly making defamatory remarks against Shinde during the show at the Unicontinental Studio in Mumbai. Kamra shot a video lampooning Shinde over the split in the Shiv Sena, and party workers later ransacked the studio and the hotel in which it is located on the night of March 23.

Earlier this week, a team of Mumbai police reached Kamra's Mahim residence after he skipped a second summons. However, Kamra was not found at his residence, following a third summons was issued asking him to appear before the police on April 5. A total of three FIRs have been filed against Kunal Kamra - Nashik Rural, Jalgaon and Nashik (Nandgaon). However, all of them have been transferred to the Khar police station.

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The video, which aired following Kamra's performance at the Habitat Comedy Club in Khar, saw the comedian using a modified version of a popular Bollywood song from 'Dil To Pagal Hai.' "Meri nazar se tum dekho toh, gaddar nazar wo aaye. Haaye," Kunal Kamra said during his show which was understood to be a jibe at Eknath Shinde.

The comments, were perceived to be made in the context of the 2022 Maharashtra political crisis, which led to the fall of the Uddhav Thackeray-led government, resulted in multiple FIRs being filed against Kamra. Following the release of Kamra's video on March 23, Shiv Sena workers, angered by his remarks, vandalised the Unicontinental Hotel in Khar where Kamra had recorded the video.

This incident led to the arrest of 12 Shinde supporters, who were later granted bail. In response to the summons, Kamra had earlier stated he was unavailable in Mumbai due to prior commitments and offered to appear for questioning on April 2. However, the police did not accept his request for a delayed appearance.

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The police have confirmed that Kamra is not currently in contact with the Khar police station. Kamra has been granted protection from arrest until April 7 by the Madras High Court, but the latest summons indicate that the investigation is moving forward despite his earlier refusals to comply.