Anwesha Dash, Pune
As per police reports, four people were arrested in Hyderabad over the screening of “Ram ke Naam” documentary in a restaurant in Hyderabad without permission, while the complainant alleges that the content “hurt Hindu religious sentiments”, Asaduddin Owaisi questions the police over stopping an award winning documentary midway and arresting people.
In Hyderabad, a restaurant had arranged for the screening of the “Ram ke Naam (In the Name of God)” documentary. Directed and produced by Anand Patwardhan covers the Rath Yatra of L.K Advani and subsequent demolition of Babri Masjid that followed. The documentary could be said to follow an “anti Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bharatiya Janata Party” rhetoric.
The complainant said that he was at the restaurant with his friends where the documentary was being played, and some of the other visitors were watching and discussing the content as well. He accused the management of abusing him when he questioned them about the screening. The complainant has also alleged that their actions were “against Hinduism and hurt religious sentiments” and that the screening was organised to create communal disharmony before the Ayodhya Ram Temple consecration.
The police are also of the same opinion and stated that they have arrested four people for “creating an atmosphere to disturb peace”. The suspects have been booked under IPC section 290 (committing public nuisance), section 143 (unlawful assembly) and section 295 A (which covers deliberate acts of outraging religious beliefs).
In another development of this case, Asaduddin Owaisi, President of All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) took to Twitter questioning the police for arresting people over screening “Ram ke Naam” documentary “without valid permission”. Owaisi said that the Government of India and Filmfare should also be punished for awarding the documentary with accolades. Furthermore, he slammed the police’s statement of “screening without permission” and asked whether everyone needs a “pre-screening certificate before watching a movie”.
The “Ram ke Naam” documentary has received huge recognition from around the world. It was presented with Filmfare Best Documentary Award and National Film Award in 1992. It had also gone on to win big at several film festivals in Switzerland and Japan. In addition to this, the screening of this documentary has also a history of being stopped mid-way or the event being disrupted. In several institutions throughout India, namely in ILS Law College, Hyderabad Central University and American Museum of Natural History; either VHP or the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) have disrupted the screening of the film.