Minister Harsh Sanghavi stated, “The documentary was not only against PM Modi, but also against 135 crore citizens of the country.”

“Prime Minister Modi devoted his entire life to the service of the nation, weaponized the instrument of development, and gave anti-national elements a fitting response. He worked tirelessly to elevate India to the international stage, he said.

In January of this year, the BBC released India: The Modi Question, a documentary film about the Gujarat riots of 2002. The film sparked controversy by referencing Modi’s leadership as chief minister during the riots while ignoring the Supreme Court’s clean bill of health.

It was referred to as a “propaganda piece” by the Ministry of External Affairs because it reflected a “colonial mindset.”

During a visit to India, British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly revealed that the issue of searches at BBC offices in India was discussed with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar during a bilateral meeting.

Cleverly stated in an exclusive interview with the media that the BBC is an independent organisation distinct from the UK government.

“I did not watch the documentary, but I have seen reactions from the United Kingdom and India. BBC is a separate and independent organisation from the government. When asked about the BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Cleverly stated, “I have a strong personal relationship with Dr. Jaishankar…the relationship between the United Kingdom and India is growing stronger by the day.”

In February of this year, Income Tax authorities conducted searches at the British broadcaster’s offices in New Delhi and Mumbai.

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In January, the federal government issued instructions to block YouTube videos and Twitter posts containing links to the controversial BBC documentary “India: The Modi Question.”

The post Gujarat Assembly passes resolution against BBC documentary appeared first on Republic Aeon.

On Monday, a separate petition to remove tweets containing links to the BBC documentary will also be heard. It was filed by senior journalist N Ram and attorney Prashant Bhushan.The comments of senior attorney CU Singh and chief judge of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud asking for an immediate listing of their respective PILs on the matter were noted by a bench made up of justices P S Narasimha, JB Pardiwala, and CJI DY Chandrachud.

Recently, the Centre issued orders to Twitter and YouTube to stop posting links to the documentary. The documentary has been derided by the ministry of external affairs as a “propaganda work” that lacks objectivity and exhibits a colonial mentality. The documentary criticises how Narendra Modi, who was Gujarat’s chief minister at the time, handled the riots.

Lawyer Sharma, who filed the PIL in his individual capacity, mentioned the petition at the beginning of the hearings and said that persons were being detained.The CJI stated, “It will be listed on Monday.

“Senior attorney CU Singh referred to a distinct argument made by Ram and Bhushan regarding the matter. He talked about how Ram and Bhushan’s tweets were purportedly erased under emergency powers. Additionally, he said that Ajmer students were expelled for watching the BBC documentary online. The CJI declared, “We shall list.”

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The PIL also challenged the Supreme Court to review portions I and II of the BBC programme and called for sanctions against those who were accountable for and participating in the Gujarat riots of 2002.

“That cause of arose to file present petition arose to the petitioner on January 21, 2023, when respondent invoking rule 16 of Information Technology Rule 2021 prohibited citizen of India from viewing BBC documentary consisting/disclosing true facts of Gujrat riot 2002 butchering of citizen of India in 2002 without adopting constitutional provisions which is a serious injury to the constitutional systems of the India and cannot be repaired if not quashed,” the plea said.

It was argued that the ban violates Article 19(1)(aprohibition )’s on restrictions on the right to free speech and expression.The petition demanded an investigation of individuals in charge of the Gujarat riots.

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The BBC documentary screening at the TISS has drawn the abrasive rebuke of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Ashish Shelar, head of the saffron party’s Mumbai branch, has charged the institute with attempting to undermine Mumbai’s and Maharashtra’s law and order.

At Mumbai’s Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), more than 200 students are watching the BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to the Progressive Students Forum, which is organising the screening. The institute had advised the students against organising the screening, yet here we are.

It is with the utmost seriousness that we note that some students, through a group, are engaged in activities contrary to the advisory issued on January 27th regarding the screening of a BBC Documentary forbidden by the Government and attempting to mobilise and trigger students to do the same, the TISS administration had stated in its circular.

The statement continued, “We caution the students to understand that any such acts by any student or groups violating the instructions issued on January 27, 2023 and engaging in any activities leading to disturbance of peace and harmony will be held responsible for the same and will be dealt with appropriately under applicable institutional rules on the matter.

The screening has been challenged by the Bharatiya Janata Party, which is currently in charge in Maharashtra. Bharatiya Yuva Morcha, the youth arm of the saffron party, organised a demonstration outside the college.

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Ashish Shelar, head of the BJP’s Mumbai unit, urged that the screening be put on hold and accused the TISS of attempting to undermine law and order in Mumbai and Maharashtra.

“By airing the BBC’s phoney documentary, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) is attempting to undermine law and order in Mumbai and Maharashtra. Otherwise, we’ll adopt the stance we want to take, thus the cops should quickly outlaw it! Shelar tweeted, “TISS should stop this business!

Students At Mumbai's TISS Screen BBC Series On PM Modi Despite Warning https://t.co/PDCCZS0abE via @ndtv

Good to learn that students at TISS could watch the Documentary series despite the restriction of the Modi Govt and the institute's advisory!

— Niraj Pant (@NirajPant2) January 28, 2023

India and overseas have both expressed extreme displeasure over the two-part documentary series “India: The Modi Question,” which details what happened during the 2002 Gujarat riots while Modi was the state’s chief minister. More than 50 tweets and countless YouTube videos promoting the documentary were removed as a result of the Modi government’s harsh criticism of it.

However, the video has been presented at locations including university campuses including Jawaharlal Nehru University, University of Delhi, Presidency University, and others by a number of political organisations. Conflicts have reportedly occurred when screenings have been stopped.

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Soon, the violence turned political when some people said that members of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) threw stones at students who had come to watch the show. They said they were attacked while watching the documentary on their cell phones. The charges were denied by a student group with ties to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

WHAT UNIVERSITY SAID :

The university administration has not yet made a public statement about what the students have said. It had, however, told students on Monday not to go to the screening, saying that the students’ union had not asked for permission and that the event should be cancelled.

Under the condition that he or she not be named, a JNU administration official told the news agency PTI about the power cut: “There is a big problem with a power line at the university. We’re taking a look at it. The engineering department says the problem will be fixed as soon as possible.”

The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union (JNUSU) said in a statement released earlier in the day on Tuesday that they have no plans to cause trouble by showing the documentary or movie. It also asked the administration to explain the rules that say permission must be asked for before any movie or documentary can be shown on university grounds.

Again, they're ready to ablaze JNU through BBC Documentary.

This is the naked abuse of rights. Remember these faces, whenever they say they're preaching peace through dialogue. #BBCDocumentary #JNU pic.twitter.com/QOcewqklte

— Vaibhav Singh (@v_singh97) January 24, 2023

What caused fights and stone-throwing?

When students showed up last night as planned to watch the controversial show, the electricity and internet were turned off to stop them.

This quickly turned into fights, with students from the student groups of the different political parties getting into a fight over the screening. Some people said that ABVP members threw stones, and others went to the Vasant Kunj police station to file a complaint against the “stone pelters.” People made signs against the administration of the university.

The student group for the Left, SFI, said that the JNUSU had asked for a screening of the BBC documentary “India: The Modi Question” on Tuesday, but the JNU administration shut it down right away. “While the documentary hasn’t been banned, it has been censored across the country by the Centre to protect their demi-god Narendra Modi, whose links to the Gujarat riots are clear in both the documentary and the victims’ accounts,” the SFI said.

Neeraj Kundan, the national president of the Congress’s NSUI, said, “Before the screening, the JNU administration cut all power sources and jammed the internet to stop students from watching the truth about communal history, the ruling party, and its warlord Modi.”

“During screening, the ABVP also began throwing stones. Even though they tried to stop them, hundreds of students watched the show on their own. Even though the ABVP is threatening violence and the administration is taking disciplinary action, the spirit of JNU and its politically responsible students is still high. The students once again won by standing up for the ideas of equality and secularism. It’s a warning to fascists on and off campus that their plans won’t work in JNU or the rest of the country,” he said.

Madhurima, who is the secretary of the JNU-All India Students Association (AISA), said, “Some students had seen ABVP members throwing stones and knew who they were.”

“Also, a teacher called and said that some thugs talking about weapons near the main gate while wearing masks,” she said.

“They (the JNU administration) cut off the power and internet,” said N. Sai Balaji, the national president of AISA, who was there. He said that students had put the documentary on their phones through an app so they could watch it and talk about it later.

Asrar Ahmed, who came to see the movie, said, “People started throwing rocks at us as we watched the documentary on our phones in peace. Since it was dark, no one could tell who they were.”

The ABVP has denied all of the accusations, saying that none of their members were there. “We didn’t go to the place, and no one from the group of students was there. “They are just using our names to get more attention,” Ambuj, who is in charge of media for the ABVP in Delhi, told PTI.

“The campus of the university has an air of fear. We tried to get students to move toward the gate, but the thugs were also there. So, we decided to march to the police station and ask for the power to be turned back on,” he said.

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WHAT THE POLICE SAY

The police said that no FIR has been filed yet. They said that the students at the university had filed a complaint and that they were looking into the claims.

WHAT THE CENTER SAYS

The Center told Twitter and YouTube on Saturday to stop letting people link to the BBC documentary “India: The Modi Question.” The Ministry of External Affairs said that the documentary was “propaganda” that lacked objectivity and showed a colonial way of thinking.

The move by the government to stop people from seeing the documentary has been slammed by the opposition.

“India: The Modi Question,” a two-part BBC documentary, says it looked into some parts of the Gujarat riots in 2002, when Narendra Modi was the chief minister of the state. The movie hasn’t been shown in India yet.

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Controversy has arisen ever since the release of a BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Now America has also given its reaction regarding this. On Monday, when a Pakistani journalist questioned about this from US State Department spokesman Ned Price, he stopped the reporter’s speech by referring to ‘democracy’. He replied, “I am not familiar with the narrative of the BBC documentary. However, I am very familiar with the shared values that the US and India have as two thriving and vibrant democracies.”

Addressing a press briefing, Price said on Monday (local time) that there are many things that strengthen America’s global strategic partnership with India, including political, economic and people-to-people ties that are exceptionally deep. .

Indo-US ties deepen

During this, Ned Price outlined the diplomatic relations between the US and India, and while describing India’s democracy as a vibrant one, he said that we look at everything that binds us together, and we try to strengthen all those elements. Look forward to what binds us together. He also emphasized the fact that the partnership that the US shares with India runs exceptionally deep and that the two nations share values that are common to American democracy and Indian democracy.

Rishi Sunak defends PM Modi

Last week, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak defended Prime Minister Narendra Modi and distanced himself from the BBC documentary series, saying he did not agree with the characterization of his Indian counterpart. Sunak made these comments on the controversial documentary raised by Pakistan-origin MP Imran Hussain in the British Parliament.

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Demand for regional stability in South Asia

Ned Price said that we have long sought regional stability in South Asia. Our relations with India and Pakistan stand on their own and we do not see them as a zero sum. But the pace, scope and character of any talks between India and Pakistan is a matter between the two countries.

White House shuts down Pakistani journalist’s question on BBC documentary on PM Modi#BBCdocumentary #WhiteHouse #NarendraModihttps://t.co/H7lLKclvkD

— ANI (@ANI) January 24, 2023

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