You Tuber arrested for derogatory remarks against Mamata Banerjee

Roddur Roy’s videos have often had abusive content and obscene language

You Tuber Roddur Roy was on Tuesday arrested by Kolkata Police. According to reports, Mr. Roy was arrested from Goa after the police traced his location to the western coastal State.

A number of complaints were filed against Mr. Roy at several police stations in the city and also at the Kolkata Police’s cyber crime cell after he made derogatory remarks against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in a video which was shared on social media.

The video, in which Mr. Roy is heard using abusive language towards the Chief Minister, was uploaded on social media after the death of singer Krishnakumar Kunnath, popularly known as KK.  Among those who complained to the police was Trinamool Congress (TMC) Rajya Sabha MP Santanu Sen.

The police are likely to bring Mr. Roy to Kolkata and produce him before a city court. Though popular, the videos Mr. Roy have often had abusive content and obscene language. In a recent video, for which a number of complaints were lodged with the city police, Mr. Roy is seen targeting not only the CM but also number of Ministers of the State government.

Mr. Roy is not a stranger to controversy. In the past, there was outrage when he distorted the lyrics of a song by Rabindranath Tagore.

While Trinamool Congress spokesperson Kunal Ghosh welcomed the arrest and said that the YouTuber should have been arrested long ago, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Anupam Hazra said that it was only after Mr. Roy used derogatory language against the Chief Minister that he had been arrested. “He should been arrested long ago for distorting the song by Rabindranath Tagore,’” the BJP leader said.