FIR against Congress leader Gohil for calling Modi 'fake OBC'

Ahmedabad: An FIR was registered on Saturday against Congress leader Shaktisinh Gohil under Representation of Peoples Act for promoting enmity between two classes in connection with elections for his remark that Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi is a "fake OBC".

"An FIR has been registered against Shaktisinh Gohil for his alleged 'fake OBC' remark against the political person," said an officer attached to Sola police station where the complaint was lodged.

The complaint was lodged by a city-based land broker Shailesh Modi who mentioned his sub-caste as 'Modh-Ghanchi', and alleged that Gohil's remarks are against the members of entire 'Modh Ghanchi' caste.

"Shaktisinh Gohil has made remarks against entire Modh-Ghanchi community for his vested political interest and to target some political person(s)," the complaint said.

The complainant accused Gohil, a former opposition leader in state Legislative Assembly, of playing a caste card to get votes from certain sections of OBC community and of "promoting casteism" and defaming entire 'Modh-Ghanchi' community through his remarks.

The FIR was registered under sections 171 (a) and 153 of IPC for interfering in the exercise of election and promoting enmity between two castes. Gohil is also charged under section 125 (A) of the Representation of People's Act (RPA) for promoting enmity

between two classes in connection with the election and under CrPC section 151 which authorises his arrest by police to

prevent any further commission of cognisable offence, the officer said.

Congress and BJP are engaged in an acrimonious exchange over the caste of BJP's Prime Ministerial nominee, who often claims that he was born in a backward class.

Earlier on May 8, Gohil had released a copy of a circular, which he claimed was issued by the Gujarat government, to claim that Modi "manipulated" records to bring his 'Modh Ghanchi' caste into the OBC list after he became chief minister in 2001.

Gohil had accused Modi of "indulging in a low level of political gimmickry" after the latter gave a caste spin to Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's "neech rajniti" remark against him and claimed that he was being targetted because being born in a "backward caste".

Accusing Modi of "garnering sympathy by invoking his caste status", Gohil had said, "He belongs to rich and prosperous Modh-Ghanchis who were never given any kind of reservation nor were included in OBCs before Modi became CM. In the way encounters were fake in Gujarat, Modi is also a fake OBC".

The Congress leader had quoted from Gujarati lexicon 'Bhagvadgomandal' to claim that Modhs are rich people living in a particular village and Ghanchis belong to the prosperous trading class.