District Authorities Deny Any Ban on Movie ‘Aligarh’

Aligarh District authorities categorically deny having imposed any “ban” on the controversial film ‘Aligarh’.

Aligarh District authorities today categorically denied having imposed any “ban” on the controversial film ‘Aligarh’, based on the life of AMU professor, Ramchandra Siras, who was suspended because of his sexual orientation and committed suicide later in 2010.

Read more here: A Fringe Group Isn’t Allowing ‘Aligarh’ to Be Screened in Aligarh

This, even as the city mayor strongly opposed the screening of the biopic. “We have no knowledge whatsoever on this matter and no cinema owner has contacted us for seeking any sort of security for exhibiting this movie,” Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) J Ravindra Gaur said when asked about media reports that the movie had been banned in the city.

However, the strongest opposition to the movie has come from BJP Mayor Shakuntla Bharti, who has announced that she would meet the district authorities tomorrow to seek an official ban on the movie.

This movie is against our culture. It is against the syncretic Ganga Jamuni culture of this city. It will bring a bad name to our city. I would not have objected if the movie had been given some other name but we cannot accept such bad publicity for our city.

BJP Mayor Shakuntla Bharti

Meanwhile, two AMU professors, including film critic Asim Siddiqui who saw the film on 26 February, said the cinema owners might have themselves stopped the screening due to poor public response. Notably, the Millat Bedari Muhim Committee (MBMC), which has a number of former AMU students, had written to the Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Arun Jaitley, seeking a ban on the film. When contacted, AMU Vice Chancellor Lt Gen (retd) Zamiruddin Shah said, “I am against the very idea of banning a movie just because a small section finds something objectionable. This only gives it unnecessary publicity.” Shah said he had not seen the film and hence had no idea of its contents. MBMC Secretary Jasim Mohammad said his organisation was opposed to the biopic because “it distorted facts”.