After the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting denied the screening of film The Unbearable Being of Lightness (based on Rohith Vemula's suicide) at the International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala, the Congress party on Sunday claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its political ideologue Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) want to suppress the nation with feudal, racial and old traditions.
"The way the film is being objected shows that the main aim of the BJP, the RSS is to suppress nation with feudal, racial and old traditions and the I-B ministry is also supporting this," Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit told ANI.
Another Congress leader P.L. Punia termed this as "unfortunate."
"This is very unfortunate. On one hand, the government talks about supporting the Dalits, the Schedule Caste (SC) and the Schedule Tribe (ST) communities and on the other, they put objection to the film which might show the real face of this government," Punia said.
The festival, which will begin on June 16, is organised by a body under the state government's Department of Cultural Affairs - Kerala State Chalachithra Academy.
The films which need to be screened at film festivals do not require a certificate from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), but they must have a censor exemption certificate from the concerned Ministry as without the exemption, no documentary film can be screened at any festival.
The other films that were denied screening were - In the shade of Fallen Chinar (on the unrest in Kashmir), and March, March, March (based on the student agitation at the JNU).