Stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra has cancelled his scheduled shows from Monday to Thursday at a venue in Whitefield and shifted them to another venue in Koramangala.

The development comes after a Hindutva outfit, Hindu Rashtra Samanvaya Samiti, petitioned the Whitefield police, demanding that Mr. Kamra should not be permitted to perform.

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They had contended that Mr. Kamra had disrespected Hindu deities.

A senior police official from the Whitefield Division told The Hindu that Mr. Kamra and the organisers of the shows visited the Whitefield Police Station on Sunday and informed that they had decided to cancel the shows. The decision, they said, was taken as the event had become controversial. No law and order incident was reported in connection with the scheduled performance.

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Taking to social media platform X, Mr. Kamra on Sunday announced: “Shows for Monday - Tuesday - Wednesday - Thursday shifted to Underground Comedy Club in Koramangala.”

He further said that amount would be refunded to those who had already booked tickets for the Whitefield shows and requested them to book shows at the Koramangala venue afresh.

On Saturday, responding to the Hindutva activists objecting to his shows in Whitefield, Mr. Kamra gave an open invite on X that he would be at the Whitefield Police Station on Sunday to seek permission to perform and any objectors were free to join him to debate on “comedy and culture”. He later said only senior journalist Aakar Patel turned up.

Meanwhile, Mohan Gowda, spokesperson, Hindu Janajagruti Samiti, said that Mr. Kamra shifted the shows after facing strong opposition and appealed to the Koramangala police not to allow him to perform in their jurisdiction.

Sources in the government said that the shows would be not stopped.