Religious sentiments can’t be hurt,  sources in government said today, explaining why the release date of Kangana Ranaut-starrer ‘Emergency’ was postponed. “Few religious organisations have raised concerns about this. Religious sentiments cannot be hurt. There is some sensitive content in the movie,” the sources said.

“The government is taking it (the concerns) seriously,” they added.

‘Emergency’, in which Ms Ranaut portrays former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, was initially slated for release on September 6. However, its release date, postponed multiple times earlier, has been deferred again as the movie is yet to get a certificate from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).

Several Sikh bodies have demanded a ban on the release of the movie, claiming it misrepresents the community. Top gurdwara body Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) has sent a legal notice to the producers of ‘Emergency’, citing misrepresentation of the history of Sikhs and demanded the removal of the objectionable scenes that will hurt Sikh sentiments.

The BJP MP from Mandi – also the director, writer, and co-producer of ‘Emergency‘ – termed the new development “hugely demotivating and unjust”.

Drawing parallels between her movie and Netflix series ‘IC814: The Kandahar Hijack’, she said censorship was only for those who make films based on “historic facts”.

“Law of the land is that one can show unimaginable amount of violence and nudity on OTT platforms without any consequence or censorship, one can even distort real-life events to suit their politically motivated sinister motives, there is all the freedom for communists or leftists across the world for such anti-national expressions,” she said.

Anubhav Sinha’s IC814 on the 1999 hijacking has courted controversy over the names of the hijackers. The government has summoned Netflix India’s content chief Monika Shergill over the row and sources said, “The government is taking it very seriously”.

Ms Ranaut, responding to a post by BJP leader Amit Malviya on IC814, wrote on X, “As a nationalist no OTT platform allows us to make films that revolve around the integrity and unity of Bharat, it seems censorship is only for some of us who don’t want tukde of this nation and make films on historic facts. It’s hugely demotivating and unjust.”

Law of the land is that one can show unimaginable amount of violence and nudity on OTT platforms without any consequence or censorship, one can even distort real life events to suit their politically motivated sinister motives, there is all the freedom for communists or leftists… https://t.co/BRRrG6NGXh

— Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) September 2, 2024

Last week, in a video message, the 38-year-old said that her film was still stuck with the censor board. She had also said she was under pressure not to show the assassination of the former prime minister by her security guards.

“This is an unbelievable time for me and I am very sorry for this state of things in this country,” she rued.

The CBFC has also received a legal notice from Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) seeking to prevent the release of Ms Ranaut’s film, claiming it may “incite communal tensions” and “spread misinformation”.

The release of the period political drama was previously scheduled to be released on November 24, 2023.

The movie is facing the latest roadblock just a week after Ms Ranaut was reprimanded by the BJP leadership over her controversial remarks on farmers’ protest. “Kangana Ranaut is not authorised to speak on policy matters on behalf of the party and has not been given permission to do so. The BJP has directed Ms Ranaut to refrain from making such statements in the future,” the party said.

The BJP’s disapproval came after the BJP MP suggested that the farmers’ protest could have led to a Bangladesh-like crisis in India if not for the strong steps taken by the government.

Shots were reportedly fired outside Punjabi singer AP Dhillon’s house on Victoria Island in Canada’s Vancouver. The incident took place yesterday and a man named Rohit Godara, a member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, has reportedly taken responsibility for the incident.

A video, which can not be independently verified, shows a man standing outside a house firing multiple shots at night. The video is being circulated on the internet but the location remains unverified.

AP Dhillon lives on Victoria Island in British Columbia.

A purported post is being circulated where the gangster, Rohit Godara, is claiming that the firing took place at two locations in Canada – Victoria Island and Woodbridge Toronto. According to the post, he fired outside the singer’s house after he featured Salman Khan in a music video. He also gave death threats to the singer in the purported post. The gangster claims he is associated with Lawrence Bishnoi. 

Security agencies are verifying the claims made in the post and analysing the video. The singer is yet to respond to the incident. The police in Canada have not responded to the incident. 

AP Dhillon is known for blending the 80s-style synth-pop with Punjabi music. His rise on the global canvas has been meteoric owing to songs like ‘Brown Munde’, ‘Excuses’, ‘Summer High’, ‘With You’, ‘Dil Nu’, and ‘Insane’, among others.

In November last year, gangster Lawrence Bishnoi claimed responsibility for a purported shooting at singer Gippy Grewal’s house in Canada. The alleged incident took place in the White Rock neighbourhood in Vancouver.

In April, two motorcycle-borne persons opened fire outside Khan’s residence at the Galaxy Apartment in Mumbai’s Bandra area and fled the spot. The Mumbai police declared jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi and his younger brother Anmol Bishnoi as “wanted accused” in connection with the incident.

Last year, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said that Mr Khan topped the list of 10 main targets that jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi planned to eliminate, citing the actor’s infamous 1998 black buck hunting incident, which according to the gangster, offended the Bishnoi community. 

Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Monday hit back at House chair Jagdeep Dhankhar in their spat over the frequency of violent crimes, including rape and murder, against women in India.

Mr Sibal posted on X this morning citing a media report that said Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Maharashtra, and Karnataka had reported the most rapes and/or murders from 2017 to 2022. “Dhankharji… seen this? Why is Bengal missing? No malaise?” he asked.

The data indicated that of the 1,500+ rapes and murders reported in that six year-period, UP registered 280 cases, followed by Madhya Pradesh (207), Assam (205), and Maharashtra (155).

Times of India (Report)

Rapes (2017 to 2022)

Out of 1551 cases of rape/gangrape followed by murder. UP reported maximum cases (280) followed by MP (207), Assam(205), Maharashtra (155) and Karnataka(79).2/2

Dhankar ji :
Seen this ?
Why West Bengal missing ?

No malaise ?

— Kapil Sibal (@KapilSibal) September 2, 2024

Mr Sibal’s unspoken jab seemed to refer to the horrific rape and murder of a junior doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Hospital last month, which has made headlines on a scale not, perhaps, seen since the Nirbhaya tragedy 12 years ago. It has also triggered a furious political row between Bengal’s ruling Trinamool and the Bharatiya Janata Party that is in power at the centre.

The spat between Mr Dhankhar and Mr Sibal was triggered by the latter authoring a resolution in his capacity as President of the Supreme Court Bar Association.

READ | Sibal-Led Bar Panel Under Veep Fire In “Symptomatic Malaise” Row

Issue of the resolution has been contested by Mr Sibal’s predecessor, Adish Aggarwala, who has claimed it does not have the approval of the association’s executive committee and is therefore invalid.

Mr Aggarwala has demanded Mr Sibal either retract the resolution or apologise.

Responding to that resolution Mr Dhankhar criticised Mr Sibal for “adding salt to our injured conscience” by flagging the doctor’s rape and murder as part of a wider “malaise” affecting the nation, indicating brutality against women had become commonplace.

READ | “Adding Salt To…”: Veep’s Fresh Fire At Kapil Sibal Over Kolkata Horror

Without naming Mr Sibal, Mr Dhankhar accused “some stray voices” of aggravating the pain caused by the barbaric killing of the doctor at the RG Kar Hospital,

“When humanity has been shamed, there are some stray voices, voices that cause concern. What do they say? ‘It is a symptomatic malaise, a frequent incident’,” Mr Dhankhar, also the Vice President, said at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Uttarakhand’s Rishikesh.

The gruesome RG Kar Hospital killing, around which lurid claims and counterclaims, that include trafficking and prostitution, have been freely made, is being tracked by the Supreme Court and investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation, which has grilled the hospital’s former chief, Dr Sudip Ghosh. Only one arrest – Sanjoy Roy, a civilian police volunteer – has been arrested so far.

With input from agencies

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