Theatre bears brunt of 'PK'

Activists of Bajrang Dal and Hindu Sena held a protest outside Delite Cinema in central Delhi on Tuesday demanding a ban on Aamir Khan’s PK alleging that it had several scenes that denigrated Hindu deities and hurt religious sentiments of the people.

The protesters burnt Khan’s effigy and also damaged the cinema hall’s property. Local police detained them for violence under Code of Criminal Procedure.

Police said around 50 members of the right wing organisations had gathered outside the cinema hall in Daryaganj around noon to protest against the screening of the film.

They were holding flags of their outfits and raised slogans against Khan and director Rajkumar Hirani demanding a ban on the film’s screening across the country.

“Derogatory remarks were made against the Hindu religion. It would not be tolerated at any cost,” a protester said.

The cinema hall authorities managed to stop the agitators from disrupting the show, but a few of the them managed to tear a large poster of the film on display outside the hall.

Others tried to disrupt the show by entering inside the hall, but the cinema hall authorities had closed the doors from inside.

Some of the protesters who gained entry into the complex were later taken outside by local police. As the protest was getting violent, they were detained under sections 107 and 151 of the CrPC. They were taken to Daryaganj police station and later released.

A police officer told Deccan Herald that no case has been registered over the incident. “We have not received any complaint over the matter. Further action will depend if any complaint is made by the management of Delite Cinema,” the officer said. He also denied that the protesters were detained.

The film has generated controversy for its portrayal of godmen and their misuse of religion for personal gain, and a number of FIRs have been registered against the film across the country.

On Sunday, another right-wing group — Vishva Hindu Parishad — had written to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting demanding a curb on such movies and “changing the character of the Censor Board”.
DH News Service