Thiruvananthapuram: The Congress party’s state unit has stepped up its demand for the immediate arrest of Kerala BJP functionary Printu Mahadev for his remark that Rahul Gandhi “would be shot in the chest” if he tried to encourage ‘Nepal-like Gen Z protests’ in India.
On Monday night, Kerala police filed a case against Printu under sections 192 (provoking with intent to cause riot), 352 (insult with intent to provoke breach of peace) and 351 (2) (criminal intimidation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The case was registered on a complaint filed by the Congress party’s Thrissur district unit.
Earlier the same evening, Kerala Congress leaders held a protest march here, demanding the arrest of the BJP functionary from Thrissur.
“We will not bend in front of the threat. The declaration made by these fascist forces is a testament to the popularity of Rahul Gandhi. It’s not a threat by a local functionary of lower ranks. We see it as a threat from a leader who rose through the student wing of ABVP, with the permission from its state leader,” Kerala Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan said.
282 Block Congress Committees across Kerala organised protest marches against the BJP leader’s open death threat to @RahulGandhi during a TV debate.
In Thiruvananthapuram, the march from Martyrs’ Square to Raj Bhavan was led by KPCC President @SunnyJosephINC MLA, AICC GS Smt.… pic.twitter.com/P7SLxJEx42
— Congress Kerala (@INCKerala) September 29, 2025
He alleged that the reluctance of the Pinarayi Vijayan-led state government to arrest Printu indicated a working relationship between the ruling LDF and the BJP.
The Kerala government, he said, is supporting the “fascists”, which forced the Congress to hold the protest march from Martyrs’ Square to Raj Bhavan. Satheesan also said the Congress will launch a nationwide protest if Printu is not arrested.
On Sunday, AICC leader K.C. Venugopal had written a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah seeking action against Printu.
Taking part in a live debate held by News18 Kerala on the situation in Ladakh, Printu had said on 25 September, “In protests in Bangladesh, the public was not with the government. But in India, the people are with the Narendra Modi government. So if Rahul Gandhi begins such a protest, even bullets will be fired at his chest. India will not see any Gen Z protests.”
The complaint against Printu, filed by Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) leader C.C. Sreekumar at Thrissur’s Peramangalam police station, accessed by ThePrint, says the BJP functionary’s statement was intended to cause riots, since the leader was well aware that an attack on Rahul Gandhi would cause mental stress to the Congress cadre.
Reacting to the matter, Kerala BJP leader V. Muraleedharan said he was surprised at the insinuation that a ruling party at the Centre could issue death threats to the Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition. “It’s the ruling party that gives protection to Rahul Gandhi. However, security forces claim that he sometimes bypasses security on his foreign trips. The government at the Centre is very keen on his security,” the former Union minister said.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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