Karnataka's New Battle: Why a Hate Speech Bill Sparks Political Firestorm

Hate speech "cannot be tolerated", Shivakumar said in a media interaction here.

The Congress government in Karnataka earlier on Wednesday tabled the Karnataka Hate Speech and Hate Crimes (Prevention and Control) Bill, 2025, in the Assembly.

State Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H.K. Patil presented the Bill amid strong opposition from BJP leaders.

BJP members continued to protest its introduction as Speaker U.T. Khader put the matter of the bill's introduction to a vote, saying that they would never agree to the tabling of the Bill. Some of them argued that the Bill was completely unnecessary and demanded that the matter be discussed in the house.

Following the uproar, the Speaker adjourned the house briefly.

The Karnataka cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, cleared the bill recently aimed at curbing hate speech and related offences during its meeting.

The law seeks to prevent hate speech and hate crimes and reduce their impact on individuals, groups and the wider community.

Leaders of the BJP have already claimed that the legislation is aimed at leaders associated with Hindutva groups, particularly in the communally sensitive coastal belt.

The Congress-led government proposed the Bill after a series of communal revenge killings in the Mangaluru district of coastal Karnataka drew national attention. The government has also set up a special force to contain violence in the region, and separate wings are monitoring social media activity that could lead to unrest.

The bill proposes imprisonment of up to three years, a fine of up to Rs 5,000, or both, for those found guilty of committing a hate crime. It states that such offences will be non-cognisable and non-bailable and will be tried before a first-class magistrate.

According to the draft, a person will be considered to have committed a hate crime if they cause harm, incite harm or spread hatred against someone based on religion, race, caste, community, sex, gender, sexual orientation, place of birth, residence, language, disability or tribe. Any act driven by prejudice or intolerance against these identities will fall within the offence.

Earlier, speaking to reporters, Home Minister G. Parameshwara clarified that the legislation was not designed to target the Bharatiya Janata Party or its leaders.

Meanwhile, Shivakumar, asked about Congress MLC B.K. Hariprasad’s statement that the Bajrang Dal should be banned over its alleged involvement in the murder of a Congress worker in Chikkamagaluru, said: "I know that our worker has been killed. I have not seen B.K. Hariprasad’s statement. I will speak about it once I get the details."

Asked whether corruption among officials was discussed in the CLP meeting, he responded: “None of the issues reported in newspapers or TV channels were discussed.”

Responding to the opposition’s allegation that the government has mishandled farmers’ issues, he said: "These are political accusations. Our government has resolved the problems of farmers. We have taken major decisions on the purchase of sugarcane and maize. The BJP has failed in this regard."

- IANS