India’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday announced that a BBC documentary based on the Gujarat riots will not be screened in India. Reportedly, the documentary questions PM Modi’s leadership during the 2002 riots. Indian government has called the documentary a ‘propaganda’ and said that there is an agenda behind releasing the documentary.
The spokesperson of India’s Foreign Ministry reacting to the Gujarat Riots documentary said, “we think that this is a propaganda piece, designed to push a particular discredited narrative. The bias, lack of objectivity & continuing colonial mindset is blatantly visible through the documentary.”
The BBC documentary released on Tuesday claimed that Narendra Modi was directly responsible for a climate of impunity. This statement was released by the team that was sent by the British government to inquire into about 2002 Gujarat riots.
Large-scale violence and riots erupted in Gujarat in the year 2002 when Narendra Modi was the Chief Minister of the state. The riots started after the coach of a passenger train filled with Hindu pilgrims caught fire in Godhra. As per the official records, 790 Muslims and 254 Hindus were killed in the riots. PM Modi at that time was blamed for not taking significant steps to control the riots.