BBC Modi documentary: Delhi Police stops screening at DU, AUD
What's the story
Toeing the government's line concerning the banned BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Delhi Police stopped the documentary's screening at Delhi University (DU) and Ambedkar University Delhi (AUD) on Friday.
Large gatherings were prohibited outside DU's Arts Faculty, where the screening was scheduled, while authorities at the AUD disconnected the power supply, echoing Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).
Context
Why does this story matter?
The BBC's documentary India: The Modi Question investigates PM Modi's involvement in the 2002 Gujarat riots, which killed over 2,000 people.
Soon after its release, the government banned the documentary, branding it as colonial propaganda pushing a "discredited narrative."
In defiance of the ban and subsequent government crackdown, various groups across the country announced screenings of the controversial documentary.
Plans
Bhim Army Student Federation, NSUI, SFI planned screenings
Student groups in the DU, namely the National Students Union of India (NSUI)—the student wing of Congress—and the Bhim Army Student Federation announced plans to screen the documentary in North Campus today at 4 pm and 5 pm respectively.
Meanwhile, the Students Federation of India (SFI) organized the screening at AUD's Kashmere Gate campus today at 1 pm.
Response
No permission sought, says DU administration
However, the DU administration prohibited the screening of the BBC documentary, saying that the student group didn't seek its permission.
DU's proctor Rajni Abbi said that the university administration wrote to the Delhi Police to deploy force and take action against those found violating the decree.
"We cannot allow such a screening," Abbi said, citing the government ban on the controversial documentary.
JMI
13 students detained before screening in Jamia Millia
After the administration of Delhi's Jamia Millia Islamia University denied permission to screen the controversial documentary on campus, all classes were suspended and students were denied entry into the campus on Wednesday evening.
Heavy force including riot police reached the university's gates in vans with tear gas cannons and 13 students were detained for allegedly creating a ruckus outside the campus.
JNU
JNU students who organized screening faced blackout, stone pelting
Students who organized a screening of the BBC documentary in Delhi's JNU on Tuesday night alleged that they were met with an administration-sponsored blackout and then stone pelting.
While the university administration claimed the outage was caused by a line fault, the discom rebutted, saying there was no supply issue from their end and they had received no complaint from the university.
Screenings
Chennai municipal councilor arrested for watching BBC documentary on phone
Earlier, the BBC documentary was screened at the University of Hyderabad (UoH), Pondicherry University, Jadavpur University, and multiple places in Kerala.
The SFI screened the documentary at Madras University in Tamil Nadu today afternoon, despite the university administration denying permission.
On Thursday, Chennai Corporation councilor A Priyadarshi was detained along with 20 others, for watching the two-part BBC docu-series on their phones.