By Eshwar
What does it say about a nation, when an entire ecosystem targets a 15-year-old minor over profanities during a protest, she gets doxxed, abused, and is forced to leave her home to go into hiding, but a 21-year-old self-proclaimed #sanatanihero gives repeated calls for violence against CJP protesters, declares a bounty on Swara Bhaskar, and openly admits to breaking a man’s skull, but still remains scot-free?
The #sanatanihero in question is Swatantra Bhardwaj, who, until 3 September, would have continued to remain a small player in the large pool of right-wing Hindutva influencers, who garnered fame and following by openly targeting the Cockroach Janta Party protests. However, one viral podcast made him a national headline.
“I cracked the skull of a man (Nishu Kumar’s father). Do you know which section this crime attracts? Section 307. He needed 60 stitches. The man was being taken away in an ambulance in serious condition. His daughter was standing outside the police station and saying that she would die by suicide if her father didn’t get justice. But I was not even jailed. The world should know this. I was out and about through the night,” said Bhardwaj in a now viral podcast.
This story was originally published in thequint.com. Read the full story here.