Over a hundred students set fire to an effigy of Kannada actor Upendra in Bengaluru on Monday, August 14. This was an act of outrage over derogatory remarks the actor made against Dalits during a Facebook Live event.

Around a hundred students from Bangalore University (BU) participated in attacking and burning the effigy of the actor in protest, demanding action against him, reports The New Indian Express. 

“We demand that he is banned from the Sandalwood industry for at least five years and strict action be taken against him for hurting the sentiments of an entire community,” said Lokesh Ram, President of the Bangalore University Postgraduate and Research Scholars Association.

The actor, who is also the leader of the Uttama Prajakeeya Party, has been mixed up in controversy following a Facebook Live event on Saturday, August 13. In the event, he made a derogatory comment against people of the Holeya community. 

There has also been an FIR filed against the actor, which was stayed by the Karnataka High Court on Monday.

Students, however, continue to demand that the actor be boycotted by the industry and arrested for allegedly “threatening secularism in the state”. The students even brought out a six-foot-tall effigy of the actor to the BU campus and took turns hitting it with slippers, before setting it ablaze.

“Justice should be given to the community, the home minister and Karnataka government must take action in this regard and ensure that he is arrested immediately,” Lokesh said.