Cong Demands Ban on Screening of Modi Biopic During Elections

The film is scheduled to release on 12 April.

A poster for the upcoming biopic on Modi featuring Vivek Oberoi.

(Photo: Yogen Shah)

The National Students’ Union of India – Goa, the student wing of the Congress, has urged the Election Commission to ban the screening of Omung Kumar’s upcoming biopic on India’s incumbent prime minister Narendra Modi during the ‘election silence’ period, reports ANI. The film, titled PM Narendra Modi, is scheduled to release on 12 April, a day after India’s Lok Sabha elections commence.

Alleging in a letter that the film is “nothing but propaganda by the BJP”, they have demanded a ban on the screening of the movie 48 hours prior to the day of voting, a period during which no party is allowed to campaign or promote itself.

The letter written by the NSUI Goa president reads:

“The NSUI Goa writes to you demanding: ban of the movie in theatres in states during the ‘election silence’ period that is two days prior to the day of voting and ban of the movie in the Lok Sabha Constituency where the Prime Minister would be contesting.”

It goes on to claim the film is a tactic by the BJP to “influence the public during the model code of conduct”.

“The NSUI Goa strongly believes that a movie on the BJP Prime Minister, who has failed miserably, is nothing but a propaganda by the BJP to influence the public during the model code of conduct without including the expenditure incurred for the movie in the election expenditure of Narendra Modi who will be contesting as a Member of Parliament,” the letter adds.

PM Narendra Modi follows Narendra Modi’s journey to becoming Prime Minister of India. The film stars Vivek Oberoi, Boman Irani, Manoj Joshi, Darshan Kumaar, Prashant Narayanan and Zarina Wahab. It has been produced Sandip Ssingh, Anand Pandit and Suresh Oberoi.