Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Feb 10: The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed the public interest litigation petition filed by Hindu Sena seeking a ban on the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) for airing the documentary, India: The Modi Question, on the 2002 Gujarat riots.
The argument was misconceived, according to a bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and MM Sundresh, and the Court cannot enforce censorship.
India: The Modi Question, the documentary in question, is about the violence in Gujarat in 2002.
The documentary explores Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi’s involvement in the riots as Gujarat’s Chief Minister at the time. The documentary has been screened at numerous colleges and universities around the nation, but the central government has outlawed it on social media and online platforms.
In addition to asking for a BBC ban, Vishnu Gupta, the president of the right-wing organisation Hindu Sena, and one Beerendra Kumar Singh, a farmer, asked for a probe into the BBC’s alleged anti-India reporting in their appeal to the Supreme Court.
In addition to asking for a BBC ban, Vishnu Gupta, the president of the right-wing organisation Hindu Sena, and one Beerendra Kumar Singh, a farmer, asked for a probe into the BBC’s alleged anti-India reporting in their appeal to the Supreme Court.
It was argued that the documentary video involving the current PM reflects both anti-Hindu propaganda by the BBC and anti-Narendra Modi propaganda to taint his image and ruin the social fabric of India.
It was also said that the BBC has held an anti-Indian viewpoint ever since India gained its independence.
It was noted that the BBC was then prohibited for two years in India by the Central government, which was headed by the then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
