YouTube on Thursday began blocking access to the controversial
BBC documentary on the December 16, 2012 gang rape, citing court orders,
while the government served legal notice to the top news channel after
it ignored a court’s restraining order and aired the documentary
carrying an interview with one of the rape convicts.
The documentary “India’s Daughter”, by British filmmaker Leslee
Udwin, carries an interview with Mukesh Singh, one of the six men who
brutally raped a 23-year-old woman on December 16, 2012. The documentary
has kicked up a storm in India, with some women’s groups demanding a
ban.
The BBC aired the documentary on Wednesday night, advancing the date
from its scheduled March 8 broadcast. Support for the documentary has
built up among people after they saw the documentary.
Several women’s rights activists on Thursday criticised the ban,
saying the “knee-jerk” reaction constitutes an attack on freedom of
expression.
A home ministry official said legal notice was served to the BBC.
“The notice says that they (BBC) had violated the contract on various fronts,” a home ministry official told IANS.
“They were supposed to take final approval from the Tihar jail
authorities on the interview of the convicts but they did not do so, and
according to the contract signed with the BBC, they were barred to use
the documentary for commercial purpose, which they have violated too,”
he said.
Earlier in the day, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the government
was “examining all aspects” related to the documentary and would take
action, if required.
Before airing the film in Britain and some other countries, the BBC
had assured the government that it would not be aired in India. They
then went ahead and showed it, and the film was subsequently uploaded on
YouTube.
“The BBC had planned to air the film on March 8, but they showed it
on March 4, the home ministry said, wondering “what was the hurry?”
The information and broadcasting ministry has directed Indian news channels not to telecast the documentary.
On Thursday evening, the documentary was unavailable on several
YouTube channels, with the message “This content is not available on
this country domain due to a court order”.
The parents of the rape victim said they were against airing of the documentary.
“I am surprised that BBC uploaded its documentary on YouTube in spite
of the court’s restraining order. The BBC has hurt the pride of India.
The act of BBC clearly shows that they don’t have fear of Indian law and
our country,” the victim’s father told IANS.
Women activists on Thursday strongly opposed the blanket ban.
“I have seen the documentary. It is powerful and moving. It does not
sensationalise anything,” CPI-M politburo member and women’s rights
activist Brinda Karat told IANS.
The All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) in a statement said it opposes the blanket ban on the documentary.
Activist Kamala Bhasin said: “We are never for bans. That doesn’t help anything.”
Writer Chetan Bhagat tweeted: “India’s Daughter is a must watch.
Anyone who watches will understand devastation caused by regressive
attitudes. Face it. Fix it.”
Members of the film fraternity reacted strongly against the orders to
restrain broadcast of the documentary, terming it a sign of “ostrich
mentality”.
Filmmaker Kunal Kohli said “it’s important to see the rapist hang
rather than watch a documentary” and Hansal Mehta said it was difficult
for him to comprehend the government’s order and questioned why the
government was restricting cinema from reflecting the truth of society.
Hours after the BBC telecast “India’s Daughter”, the hash tag
#IndiasDaughter became the top global trend on social networking site
Twitter on Thursday.
Two other hash tags #NirbhayaInsulted and #DontRapeAgain were also trending on second and fourth positions, respectively.
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