Kerala cyber cell arrests YouTuber who made ‘vulgar’ remarks about feminists in his video

Vijay P Nair was arrested two days after group of activists assaulted him in Thiruvananthapuram over his video titled ‘Why feminists in India and Kerala do not wear underwear’.

A screenshot of Kerala-based vlogger Vijay P. Nair, who is accused of making 'indecent' comments against activists. | Photo: YouTube

Bengaluru: The Kerala Cyber Crime Cell has arrested a local YouTuber, Vijay P. Nair, under the IT Act for making sexually explicit comments against women in a 20-minute video titled ‘Why feminists in India and Kerala do not wear underwear’.

The arrest was made Monday, two days after a group of activists assaulted Nair at a lodge in Thiruvananthapuram.

The activists attacked Nair over the video he posted on YouTube on 15 August, claiming it is filled with double entendres and casts aspersions on several women activists, including 86-year-old Malayalam poet-activist Sugathakumari and dubbing artiste Bhagyalekshmi.

After the attack, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan came out in support of the women who have been allegedly slandered by Nair.

“I have given directions to the police to conduct a comprehensive probe into the complaints. However, we advise people not to take law into their own hands. We will ensure that stringent action is taken against those who abuse women on social media,” Vijayan said in a statement to the media on 27 September.

“If the law is not stringent enough, we will even think of legislating a new law that will book such offenders,” Vijayan said.

On his directions, the cyber cell booked Nair under Section 67 and Section 67 A (transmission of obscene material) of the IT Act, according to the state police.

At a press conference, Health Minister K.K. Shailaja also promised strong action against people who abused women and used vulgar language.

The state government also wrote to YouTube to take down the video after it received several complaints.

What the vlogger said

In his video, the accused had also targeted Sabarimala temple activists Trupti Desai, Kanakadurga and Bindu, and purportedly used ‘indecent’ language to address them and their activities.

Claiming to have a PhD in clinical psychology from ‘Global Human Peace University’ based in Chennai, Nair said women who call themselves activists not only have “loose character” but also use “indecent methods” to gain popularity and find a footing in the film industry.

Last week, Bhagyalekshmi and activists Diya Sana and Sreelakshmi Arackal tracked him to the Thiruvananthapuram lodge and assaulted him, throwing motor oil over him.

Sana recorded a video of this and posted it on her social media page. In this video, Nair can be heard repeating that he only communicated what he had heard from others.

He later filed a complaint against the activists over the assault.

Organisations such as the Film Employees Federation of Kerala and the Women in Cinema Collective came out in support of the activists and demanded strong action against people like Nair.