Raipur: The Kashmir Files, a film which highlights atrocities against Kashmiri Pandits in the 1990s when they were attacked and forced to leave their homes, seems to have attained a political colour.
No less than Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the Vivek Agnihotri-directed film and said that an “entire ecosystem” is trying to discredit a film which tells the “truth”. Union Home minister Amit Shah met the cast and crew members of the film, while a number of BJP-governed states made the film tax-free.
Now, chief minister Bhupesh Baghel of Congress-ruled Chhattisgarh has urged the Centre to remove central GST and make The Kashmir Files tax-free across the country.
“BJP MLAs have demanded that ‘Kashmir Files’ should be made tax free. I request the Hon’ble Prime Minister to announce the removal of Central GST from this film. The film will be tax free across the country,” Baghel tweeted, tagging the Prime Minister’s Office.
He added that all members of the Legislative Assembly (including those in Opposition) have been invited to watch the movie together in a cinema hall in the state’s capital Raipur.
A few days ago, BJP MLA Brijmohan Agrawal alleged that the Congress government doesn’t want people to watch the movie and was putting pressure on theatres not to sell tickets – a charge refuted by the ruling party.
After Modi criticised a certain section for trying “very hard to discredit the film” rather than discussing it “as a piece of art”, Congress launched a counter-attack and asked the PM how long his government will take advantage by scratching wounds.
“Remember, when Kashmiri Pandits were being persecuted and were fleeing under the BJP-backed government, Rajiv Gandhi ‘gheraoed’ Parliament and raised their voices. But the BJP gave tacit support to this tragedy, taking out a ‘Rath Yatra’ for political gains,” Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.
