BJP exploring options to block hate speech law in Karnataka, while Telangana plans its own

The BJP in Karnataka is exploring options to block the hate speech bill from becoming a law as it fears the prospect of the Siddaramaiah regime using it as a weapon to target the Opposition leaders.

“We are discussing how to go about it. We will, of course, be meeting the Governor to press him not to assent the bill,” senior BJP lawmaker S Suresh Kumar told ET. “Since there are judicial precedents striking down such laws, we are even exploring legal options available to us,” he added.

Both the Houses of the Legislature passed the Hate Speech and Hate Crimes (Prevention) Bill, 2025, last week, and the government is expected to send the Bill to Raj Bhavan in the next few days requesting the Governor’s assent.


A first such bill in the country, the move has inspired cthe neighbouring Telangana to plan a similar law. Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, speaking at a Christmas event in Hyderabad on Saturday, said his government would also present its own hate speech bill in the upcoming budget session. His government would ensure the people keep their freedom to follow one’s religion and equal rights for every religion, he added. The Congress rules both Karnataka and Telangana.

In Bengaluru on Sunday, Dy CM DK Shivakumar defended the bill calling it the need of the hour as some people were stoking tension in society by making inflammatory speeches. This was creating a divide among people and law & order problem, as well, the Dy CM said, insisting that Karnataka was a peace-loving state.

MoS (labour & employment & MSME) Shobha Karandlaje, meanwhile, has written to Governor Thawarchand Gehlot saying that the bill gave sweeping authority to the government to silence opposition voices, restrain the media, and intimidate the citizens.

The bill’s aim was not preventing hate speech but one’s right to speech, she said, while urging the Governor not to approve it. Karandlaje, who represents Bengaluru North in the Lok Sabha, said the bill was “vague, overbroad, and susceptible to misuse.”