Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday hit back at former Central Board of Film Certification chairperson Leela Samson and its other members for “politicising routine issues” and calling them “rebels without a cause.”
Earlier in the day, 12 other members of the Board also tendered their resignations to Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore, who however, denied receiving them.
In his Facebook post, Mr. Jaitley rubbished allegations of interference and corruption and said neither he, nor Mr. Rathore, had any communication with any member of the censor board.
“It is the UPA-appointed censor board which has since continued. If there is any corruption, the UPA appointees have themselves to blame… I only wished that the fact of corruption had been communicated even once by the chairperson of the censor board to me. The non-functional chairperson never did so,” he wrote.
Punjab stops screening
Citing reports of tensions surrounding release of the controversial film, Messenger of God starring the chief of the Dera Sacha Sauda, the Punjab government on Saturday decided to “stop with immediate effect” the screening of the film. Though the government has avoided using the term “ban,” the decision prohibits all forms of exhibition and viewing of the film, including at cinema houses.
Watch video: Censor Board row: Issue being politicised, says Anupam Kher
