Islamophobic Remarks :
Hindu nationalist Milind Ekbote hails from Shivaji Nagar in Pune, Maharashtra. He is the founder of the cow vigilante organization Samasta Hindu Aghadi and the boss of the Hindu Ekta Manch.
Additionally, he was the creator of Shiv Pratap Bhoomi Mukti Andolan and the President of Dharmaveer Sambhaji Maharaj Pratishthan.
Politically, he has been a corporate member of the Shiv Sena and the BJP, but after being turned down for an electoral ticket in 2002, he drifted away from these organizations.
He has gained prominence over the years in Maharashtra by portraying himself as a “gaurakshak” and organizing yearly demonstrations against Valentine’s Day. Twelve instances of trespassing, criminal intimidation, and attempts to sow discord between two villages have been made against Ekbote. In five of these cases, Ekbote was found guilty, the Mumbai Mirror said.
Ekbote is a very casteist leader who gathers groups of Hindu youth in the Satara and Pune Districts and tells them (misrepresented) tales from ‘Hindu History’ involving Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Sambhaji Maharaj, and Swatantryaveer Savarkar. He crafts these tales in a way that makes it certain that they will agitate the listener against the Muslim and Dalit populations and spark intergroup conflict.
Sabrang claims that in 2001, he made an incendiary speech to a mob outside the Sorati Somnath Temple, and as a result, the crowd destroyed a Muslim cemetery and Idgah and set fire to Muslim businesses and homes.
In Pratapgarh, he incited mobs to attack the Afzal Khan Memorial Trust. Additionally, he had stated that the Subhansha Dargah, which is located in the middle of Shukrawar Peth, has to be destroyed since it impedes traffic and inconveniences passing travelers.
You may view the cases against Ekbote here.
For inciting violence against Dalits in Bhima Koregaon, Maharashtra, who had congregated to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Bhima Koregaon, a First Information Report was made against Ekbote and Sambhaji Bhinde on January 2, 2018. The violence claimed the life of a 16-year-old boy.
Ekbote was charged with violating the IPC sections 307, 143, 148, 149, and 295, which include rioting and making an attempt at murder. In March 2018, he was detained, however he was eventually freed on bond.
He was arrested in March 2021 for hurting religious feelings and defaming Muslims after referring to a neighborhood in Pune as “Mini Pakistan” in a video clip posted on social media.