'Diary of West Bengal' Trailer Sparks Row; Kolkata Police Books Makers
A legal notice has been sent to director Sanoj Mishra, asking him to appear before the police on 30 May.
advertisement
The Kolkata Police on Friday, 26 May, registered a case against the producer and director of the film, Diary of West Bengal, on the grounds that its trailer – which was released a month ago – allegedly "promoted enmity between two groups."
A First Information Report (FIR) has been filed at Amherst police station, and a legal notice has been sent to the director of the film, Sanoj Mishra, summoning him before the investigating officer of the case on 30 May.
The movie, which claims to be based on true events, is presented by Wasim Rizvi Films and produced by Jitendra Narayan Singh.
The FIR has been lodged under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 153A (promoting enmity between two groups), 501 (defamatory matter), 504 (intentional insult), 295A (outraging religious feelings), and relevant sections of the IT Act and Cinematography Act, a senior police official told PTI.
As per PTI, Sanoj Mishra, who is also the writer of the film, claimed that the film was not about CM Banerjee. On the notice issued by the Kolkata Police, Mishra said he was consulting legal experts.
Sharing a clip from the trailer, BJP's IT Cell head Amit Malviya said, "The notice to filmmakers is uncalled for because nothing in the trailer appears factually incorrect. It is lived experience of many in Bengal."
However, Trinamool Congress spokesperson, Joy Prakash Majumder, told PTI that the film aimed at "dividing people on the basis of religion, spread a false narrative of hatred, and disruption of the communal harmony and amity present in West Bengal."
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)