Chennai cops refuse protection for Muzaffarnagar riots documentary
Film is about the riots that wreaked havoc in western UP in 2013
By : DC Correspondent
Update: 2015-08-26 05:13 GMT
Chennai: Threats from Hindu groups and refusal by the city police to provide protection forced a change in venue of the screening of a documentary film on the Muzaffarnagar riots in the city on Tuesday. The documentary film, Muzaffarnagar Baaqi Hai, by Nakhul Singh Sawney is about the riots that wreaked havoc in western UP in 2013 and was set for a nationwide screening on Tuesday spread across different cities.
The film had its fair share of troubles earlier as members of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) protested against the screening of the movie at a college in Delhi. The Ambedkar-Periyar Study Circle (not to be confused with the IIT group) had organised the screening of the movie at arts editor Sadanand Menon’s studio, ‘Spaces’ in Besant Nagar.
“Since morning, cops from varying hierarchy across the department knocked on my door demanding that the screening be cancelled. Apparently, they have received threat calls and messages saying that the film has inflammatory content and would create law and order issues,” Sadanand Menon told DC.
As a result, the potential audience, which turned up for the screening around 6 pm, went on a protest at the beach against the police action. “We couldn’t inform the audience about the issue with the cops and they took to the streets after learning about this behaviour,” Mr.Menon added.