Kottayam: Police have reached arrived at the residence of controversial BJP leader P C George in Erattupetta here as he faces imminent arrest over a hate speech case. Authorities are expected to take him into custody as soon as he reaches home.

The case resulted from the derogatory remarks made by George during a TV discussion on January 5 against the Muslim community. Citing his repeated violations of bail conditions, the Kerala High Court on Friday denied him anticipatory bail, stating that granting relief in such cases would send out “a wrong message to society’.

In 2022, George was similarly booked for a hate speech case, after which the court had explicitly directed him to refrain from making statements that could incite religious enmity. However, his recent remarks were found to be in violation of these conditions, leading to the current legal action.

As police prepare to take him into custody, BJP workers have gathered at his residence in protest, expressing their opposition to the move. Meanwhile, local residents have taken a stand against him, asserting that he should not have disregarded the very people who had voted him to power in the past years.

Meanwhile, reports suggest that George reached out to BJP Kerala in-charge Prakash Javadekar seeking his support, but he reportedly declined.