BENGALURU, Dec. 11 -- The Karnataka government on Wednesday tabled in the assembly a contentious bill that ministers say will curb hate speech against marginalised communities but opponents say will criminalise thought and political rallies because of its provision of 10 years imprisonment and fines of up to Rs.1 lakh. The Karnataka Hate Speech and Hate Crime (Prevention) Bill was cleared by the cabinet on December 4 and was tabled in the assembly by home minister G Parameshwara, fulfilling a key promise of the Congress government amid loud objections from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmakers. According to the bill, any expression, which is made, published or circulated in words either spoken or written or by signs or by visible representations or through electronic communication or otherwise, in public view, with an intention to cause injury, disharmony or feelings of enmity or hatred or ill will against person alive or dead, class or group of persons or community, to meet any prejudicial interest is hate speech. Any biases on the grounds of religion, race, caste or community, sex, gender, sexual orientation, place of birth, residence, language, disability, or tribe have also been categorised as hate speech. The bill also outlines what it describes as hate crimes, identifying them as acts involving the communication, promotion, propagation or attempted incitement of hate speech. The provisions of the Bill will not apply to books, pamphlets, papers, writings, drawings and painting representation or figures, if they are in the interest of science, literature, art, learning or are used for "bona fide" heritage or religious purposes. Initial offences may result in at least one year of imprisonment, extendable to seven years, along with a fine of Rs 50,000. Repeat violations carry a minimum of two years in prison and fines up to Rs 1 lakh. Offences under the Act are classified as cognisable and non-bailable. Courts may award adequate compensation to the victim based on the gravity of the impact of the crime. "You cannot allow hate speech to happen. We have to maintain peace, law and order in the state," deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar said. Speaker UT Khader put the introduction of the bill to a voice vote, noting that the bill was formally tabled and directing those in support and opposition to register their responses. The government has argued that the measure is intended to strengthen existing legal provisions related to communal tensions. Senior officials have pointed to recent incidents of retaliatory killings in the Mangaluru region, which they say underscored the need for updated tools to curb violence. Leader of Opposition R Ashoka opposed the Bill, accusing the government of attempting to curb free speech. "The Bill is aimed at silencing Opposition leaders," he alleged....