Will screen BBC documentary wherever possible: Tamil Nadu CPI(M)

Condemning the arrest of a councillor for watching the BBC documentary on Gujarat riots, the CPI(M) on Friday said it will join hands with democratic associations to screen the blocked film wherever possible in Tamil Nadu and asked the state police to protect the personal liberty of citizens.

The party also screened the documentary at its office in Chennai on Friday evening. The documentary, which has been blocked by the Union Government, was screened at the Presidency College on Thursday evening but was stopped at the University of Madras on Friday afternoon. However, students opened their laptops and saw the documentary in full public view.

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“This is a government university, and we need a direction from the government to do anything,” Prof Dr S Gowri, Vice-Chancellor of the university, said about the screening of the documentary. On Thursday, a few individuals, including a councillor of the CPI(M), were taken into custody for a few hours for viewing the documentary.

In a statement, CPI(M) state secretary K Balakrishnan criticised the Union Government for blocking the documentary in India using several sections of the Information Technology Act. “People and democratic associations are screening the movie at several public places since they are not accessible on the web."

“The police have arrested people for watching the documentary on their mobile phones after stopping its screening. Such actions cannot be justified. It is the fundamental duty of citizens to know what is there in the documentary. It will lead to a dialogue,” Balakrishnan said.

He also said the CPI(M) and other organisations will continue to screen the documentary wherever it is possible. “The police and the Tamil Nadu government should protect the basic rights of the people,” he added.