Dissent gagged in India, says Naseeruddin Shah in Amnesty India video
New Delhi, Jan 4 (IBNS): Veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah has raised concerns about the gagging of dissent in India in an Amnesty India video.
“Those who demand rights are being locked away. Artists, actors scholars, poets are all being stifled. Journalists too are being silenced. In the name of religion, walls of hate are being erected. Innocents are being killed,” he says.
“Had we dreamt of a country where there is no space for dissent? Where only rich and powerful are heard, and where the poorest and most vulnerable are forever oppressed? Where there once was law, there is now only darkness,” he says.
Last month, the actor faced a backlash after he spoke about mob violence in India.
In an interview with Karwan-e-Mohabbat, Shah had said: "There is complete impunity for those who take law into their own hands. In many areas we are witnessing that the death of a cow is more significance than that of a police officer."
In 2018, India witnessed a massive crackdown on freedom of expression and human rights defenders. Let's stand up for our constitutional values this new year and tell the Indian government that its crackdown must end now. #AbkiBaarManavAdhikaar pic.twitter.com/e7YSIyLAfm
— Amnesty India (@AIIndia) January 4, 2019
On December 3, police inspector Subodh Kumar Singh and a student, Sumit Kumar, were killed in mob violence in Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr district after cow carcasses were found. Local Bajrang Dal leader Yogesh Raj is the main accused in the case.
Naseeruddin Shah ko gussa kyon ata hai: Here is a list of his past remarks and rows
“I feel anxious for my children because tomorrow if a mob surrounds them and asks, ‘Are you a Hindu or a Muslim,’ they will have no answer. It worries me that I don’t see the situation improving anytime soon,” he said.
BJP chief in Uttar Pradesh Mahendranath Pandey has also attacked the actor.
"Naseeruddin Shah is a good artist," he said. "In one of his movies, he played the role of a Pakistani agent. I think he is growing into that character now."
Shah played a Pakistani spy in the 1999 film Sarfarosh in which his performance was widely praised.
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