Nehru's descendant faces hate-crime charges

The great-grandson of India’s first prime minister is to be charged with inciting hatred against Muslims during a speech at a political rally.

Varun Gandhi, 29, descendant of former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, a founding father of India’s secular democracy, compared a Muslim political rival to Osama Bin Laden and pledged during the rally ahead of next month’s national vote to “cut their throats after elections”.

He was apparently referring to Muslims, who make up 14% of India’s 1.1 billion citizens.

A electoral commission spokesman said officials in Uttar Pradesh, the state where Gandhi is running for office, have been ordered to prosecute a criminal case against him for “promoting hatred”.