Supreme Court To Hear Plea Challenging Ban On BBC’s Film On PM Modi
New Delhi, 30th January 2023: Today (January 30), the Supreme Court decided to hear the cases brought against the BBC documentary on the 2002 Gujarat riots against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. According to sources, the hearing is scheduled for the following week.
Earlier today, Adv. ML Sharma filed a PIL along with petitions from Journalist N. Ram, Adv. Prashant Bhushan, and other parties. In an appeal to the Supreme Court, Adv. ML Sharma contested the BBC documentary’s ban on the 2002 Gujarat riots. Sharma said in a PIL that it is unlawful to prevent the film from being screened. Inquiries into the documentary’s content and an investigation of persons responsible for the rioting were also requested.
The submissions of attorney M. L. Sharma and senior counsel C. U. Singh asking for an urgent listing of their respective PILs on the matter were noted by a bench consisting of Chief Justice D. Y. Chandrachud and justices P. S. Narasimha and J. B. Pardiwala. The CJI stated, “It will be listed on Monday.”
India: The Modi Question, a documentary, is based on the riots that occurred in Gujarat in 2002 when PM Modi was the state’s Chief Minister. The series has been branded a “propaganda piece” by the Indian government.
The documentary’s screenings have been halted in several places across the nation, including Delhi, the capital, where it was taking place at well-known institutions like the JNU and Jamia Milia Islamia.
After the management cancelled the screenings using various tactics like turning off the campus’ electricity, there were violent protests at both institutions.
