Barelvi cleric writes to Amit Shah seeking ban on ‘Chhava’
The cleric demanded legal action against the writer, director and producer of the film, which he claimed had portrayed Aurangzeb in a provocative manner
Maulana Shahabuddin Razvi, a Barelvi sect cleric, wrote to union home minister Amit Shah and called for a ban on the film ‘Chhava’ for allegedly inciting communal unrest by its portrayal of Emperor Aurangzeb, reported PTI.
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Razvi, who is the national president of the All India Muslim Jammat Dargah Aala Hazrat, asked Shah to initiate legal action against ‘Chhava’s writers, director and producers.
He stated that the film had portrayed Emperor Aurangzeb in a manner which would incite Hindu youth and bring unrest, such as the communal violence which erupted in Nagpur.
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“The atmosphere of the country is deteriorating since the release of the film Chhava. In the film Chhava, Hindu youth have been incited and provoked by showing the image of Emperor Aurangzeb as anti-Hindu. This is the reason why leaders of Hindu organisations are giving hate speeches about Emperor Aurangzeb at various places,” he told PTI.
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He added, “The Muslims of India do not consider Emperor Aurangzeb as their idol and leader. We consider him only a ruler, nothing more than that.”
The cleric also stated that he had appealed for peace in Nagpur and was in touch with the Ulama and Imams of mosques in the region to calm them down as tensions rose.
On Tuesday, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis also called attention to the film, starring Vicky Kaushal as Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, and stated that it had “ignited people’s anger against Aurangzeb"
Amid calls from the Bajrang Dal and VHP to tear down Aurangzeb's tomb, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has put up tin sheets on two of the sides of the 18th-century structure. Several areas are still under curfew and more than 69 people have been arrested in relation to the violence.
