The Karnataka Police on Wednesday filed a first information report against Bharatiya Janata Party’s social media cell head Amit Malviya for a tweet about Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, PTI reported.

On June 17, Malviya had posted an animated video on Twitter with a caption: “Rahul Gandhi is dangerous and playing an insidious game.”

The video purportedly shows Gandhi conspiring with unidentified foreign powers to allegedly gain political power for himself in India.

The video also takes a dig at Gandhi’s visit to the United States in May, where he had spoken against BJP’s “politics of hatred”. It includes Gandhi’s statement that the Indian Union Muslim League is a secular party to purportedly show that he is working at the behest of forces that are against India.

The first information report against Malviya was registered on a complaint filed by former Congress MLA Ramesh Babu at the High Grounds Police Station in Bengaluru.

“The video showcases an inflammatory score, a distortion of the song ‘Govinda’ from the movie ‘Sarkar’ [2005],” the complaint stated, according to The News Minute. “The lyrics have been altered to ‘Thodunga’ [I will break], aiming to provoke and stir communal sentiments, a tactic that is morally repugnant and legally impermissible.”

Babu alleged that the video was a well-planned conspiracy of the BJP to commit illegal acts. “In fact, Rahul Gandhi is shown against the backdrop of Manhattan cityscape, implying an association with foreign elements acting against the national interests,” the complaint added. “This false accusation is not only defamatory but also poses a threat to national security by sowing seeds of distrust among the populace.”

Malviya has been booked under Sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence), 120B (criminal conspiracy), 505(2) (statements creating or promoting enmity, hatred, or ill-will between classes), and 34 (Acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code.

Soon after the FIR was filed, Malviya reposted the same tweet with a caption in Hindi, “Rahul Gandhi a pawn of foreign forces.”

BJP MP Tejasvi Surya alleged that the case against Malviya was politically motivated.

“The case is registered under 153A and 505(2) of IPC for his alleged statement against Rahul Gandhi,” the Bengaluru South Lok Sabha member wrote in a tweet. “Both the above sections deal with promoting enmity between groups. So, what is Rahul Gandhi? An individual or a group or a class?”

But the Karnataka Minister for Information Technology and Biotechnology, Priyank Kharge, told reporters that the BJP cries foul whenever it faces the brunt of law.

“I would like to ask the BJP, tell me which part of the FIR that has been lodged against Malviya with a malafide intention,” the son of Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge asked. “Who is the creator of the video? Who is the one spreading the video? Who is getting the video to have enough traction on social media? Who is spreading these lies?”

Priyank Kharge had accompanied Babu on June 19 to lodge the complaint against the BJP leader.