FIR Filed Against Star Director And 48 Others

An FIR has been filed against 49 celebrities who wrote an open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in July 2019, expressing concern over the rising incidence of communal violence in the country.

The FIR has been filed under various sections of the Indian Penal Code including sedition, public nuisance, hurting religious feelings and insulting with intent to provoke breach of peace.

The letter was written by 49 prominent personalities, including filmmakers Mani Ratnam, Anurag Kashyap, Shyam Benegal, actor Soumitra Chatterjee as well as vocalist Shubha Mudgal in July this year.

The letter had stated that “Jai Shri Ram” had become a provocative war cry, and had appealed to Prime Minister Modi to stop the use of Ram in this manner.

The letter also questioned the action taken by the PM against the perpetrators of such hate crimes. “You have criticised such lynchings in Parliament Mr Prime Minister, but that is not enough! What action has actually been taken against the perpetrators?”