K’taka Police File FIR Against Anchor Sudhir Chaudhary for Attempting to Disrupt Communal Disharmony

The Karnataka police have filed an FIR against anchor Sudhir Chaudhary, accusing him of attempting to disrupt communal harmony during a show on Aaj Tak where he discussed the state government’s commercial vehicle subsidy scheme.

Chaudhary has been charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly promoting enmity between groups.

The complaint was lodged by an official from the Karnataka Minorities Development Corporation.

In the show, Chaudhary purportedly asserted that the subsidies were exclusively for minorities, not Hindus, which led to the allegations outlined in the FIR.

Chaudhary is named as the primary accused, with the chief editor and organizer of Aaj Tak listed as accused number two and three respectively. The show aired on September 11, prompting the Karnataka government to threaten legal action against Chaudhary for spreading misinformation about government schemes. These initiatives provided subsidies for minority community members to purchase commercial vehicles.

An advertisement in a newspaper about the scheme also sparked controversy, with BJP MPs claiming it favored minorities under Congress rule. The government countered that similar schemes existed for various communities and that the subsidy program for minorities was in place even during the Bharatiya Janata Party’s tenure.

Karnataka IT/BT minister Priyank Kharge condemned the show as “deliberate & malicious,” stating that the government would take appropriate action. The decision to file an FIR against Chaudhary drew criticism from BJP MP Tejasvi Surya, who accused the Karnataka government of conducting a “witch-hunt” against the anchor for asking valid questions about the scheme’s implementation.