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Naseeruddin Shah plays a vital role in IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack.
Shiv Sena spokesperson Krishna Hegde said that the actor has a penchant for making controversial statements time and again which create doubts in the minds of the people.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena have traded barbs at actor Naseeruddin Shah over his comment that how he feared a ‘wave of islamophobia’ during the 1999 Kandahar Hijack of Aircraft IC814 with over 200 people on board.
Shiv Sena spokesperson Krishna Hegde said that the actor has a penchant for making controversial statements time and again which create doubts in the minds of the people.
“It is shocking the Naseeruddin Shah is speaking not about the safety and lives of 200 passengers on IC 814 which was hijacked to Kandahar but about Islamophobia after living in India for 74 years and living amongst the rich and famous. He has a penchant for making controversial statements time and again, these kinds of divisive statements create doubts in the minds of communities,” she said.
Maharashtra cultural and forest minister and BJP leader Sudhir Mungantiwar on Wednesday said that it does not matter to him that what Shah has said but the point is that cinema should portray a clear and truthful image of the facts. He said that it is to be noted that who were the terrorists.
While referring the demolition of unauthorised structures erected on government land around the tomb of Afzal Khan, the 17th century general of the Adil Shahi dynasty of the Bijapur kingdom in 2022 and the burning of effigy of Ravana every year, Mungantiwar said that the BJP don’t discriminate people or evils on the basis of the religion unlike others.
“We don’t see everything according to the religion but who has committed the crime, that has to be seen,” he said.
He also refereed to freedom of speech and expression and said that some people over the years have used the constitutional right to show things which have had hurt the sentiments of a larger group. But when these things go against them, they give cry for mercy and appeal to the constitution.
What Naseeruddin Shah said?
Shah had claimed that he was left ‘disturbed’ after the 1999 Kandahar Hijack of IC814. On Tuesday, the actor was speaking at a press conference for his recently released show when he recalled fearing a ‘wave of islamophobia’ after the shocking incident took place in 1999. The veteran actor mentioned that he was ‘terribly concerned’ and added that it left him with a feeling of unease for a long time.
“I was about 50 when this happened, end of the previous century. I remember being extremely disturbed because I feared that it would provoke another wave of Islamophobia. Luckily, at that time, it didn’t. I remember feeling terribly concerned about the situation and what it would lead to. I was left with a feeling of unease. I could not pinpoint why I felt this but I did feel that the passenger and pilot went through a horrific time. No closure. I remember feeling this,” Naseeruddin had said.
WHAT’S THE CONTROVERSY?
IC-814 The Kandahar Hijack, which features Naseeruddin Shah, Pankaj Kapur, Vijay Varma, Dia Mirza, Arvind Swamy and Dia Mirza has been well-received by critics. However, a section of social media users has demanded for the boycott of the series for allegedly hiding the real identities of the terrorists involved in the 1999 incident.
In the series, the terrorists have been named Bhola, Shankar, Doctor, Burger and Chief. The series seemingly hinted that the terrorists had codenames. However, the hijackers were Muslims from Pakistan. This has irked many, who have called it “whitewashing”.
Following the backlash, Netflix agreed to update the disclaimer of the series and mention the real names of the hijackers. The decision came after officials of the Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry met Netflix representatives over the alleged misrepresentation of facts in the new series.
