‘Was Parrikar mad?’ At least one MLA agitated as Goa lifts ban on Sri Ram Sene’s Pramod Muthalik

On March 21, when he came to Goa, Muthalik met former state RSS chief Subhash Velingkar, where the duo reportedly discussed “love jihad”.

It was in 2009 that Muthalik and his associates were first banned from entering Goa by the Digambar Kamat-led Congress government, shortly after Sri Ram Sene activists attacked pub-goers in Mangaluru (then Mangalore) for “violating traditional Indian values”.

In March 2014, Muthalik was inducted into the BJP, only to be shown the exit hours later, after there was opposition from within the party. Parrikar commented on it at the time, saying: “Even I told the party leadership that we have no space for people who are known for anti-women and violent activities.”

In May 2014, the Congress filed a complaint against Muthalik, accusing him of making an “inflammatory speech” at a convention in Goa, by allegedly urging Hindus to keep “weapons ready to protect their religion”.

In August 2014, the Parrikar-led government in Goa banned the Sri Ram Sene chief’s entry into the state again. This followed soon after Muthalik’s announcement that he would set up a branch of his outfit in the state to “fight against drug, alcohol and pub culture”, and to curb Goa’s “western culture of clubs and pubs”.

The Parrikar government acted after stakeholders in the tourism industry – the mainstay of Goa’s economy – legislators and civil society voiced concerns over the Sri Ram Sene coming to the state. The CM reportedly also received police reports that the outfit coming to Goa may lead to a law and order situation and that Muthalik’s statements “will affect peace and harmony while creating fear in the minds of the people”. Informing the Assembly of this in August 2014, Parrikar said: “I asked the police to prepare a report and it was sent to the collector to ban the entry of Sri Ram Sene.”

In 2015, Muthalik moved the Supreme Court against the ban, claiming that “the repeated prohibitory orders violated my fundamental rights” and were orchestrated by an “invisible hand operating from Goa to Delhi”. The apex court rejected his plea.

For a decade after that, the ban on the outfit was extended every few months by magistrates of North and South Goa districts.

On lifting of the ban on Muthalik now, Velingkar said there was no need for the prohibition now, and the state government had actually been late by “several years”. “The Sri Ram Sene has done nothing wrong in Goa to disturb peace and order,” he said.

On his meeting with Muthalik, the former Goa RSS chief said, “We are a part of the Hindu Raksha Maha Aghadi, which works towards uniting Hindus. We have information that there are at least 3,500 cases of ‘love jihad’ in Goa. They (the cases) are not in the public eye as parents often feel that their social prestige would be jeopardised.”