ANS: The controversial film The Kerala Story was prohibited in West Bengal, while it was declared “tax-free” in Uttar Pradesh.
“The Kerala Story to be made tax-free in Uttar Pradesh,” tweeted Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday.
Earlier Madhya Pradesh had announced the film as tax-free.
Sudipto Sen’s film The Kerala Story portrays the radicalisation and recruitment of young Hindu and Christian women in Kerala to ISIS.
Kerala Story created political turmoil. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan accused the film’s makers of propagating Sangh Parivar’s ideology. He attacked the film for portraying Kerala as a hotbed of religious extremism and disseminating hate propaganda.
The film was released after the Madras High Court denied a ban petition. The high court’s ruling came a day after the Supreme Court rejected several appeals against the film’s release, including one from the Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind. The top court advised the petitioners to appeal to the relevant high court since the video could inspire hatred and hostility.
Meanwhile, after Tamil Nadu, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee banned the film on Monday.
Speaking to the media, Banerjee said, “West Bengal government has decided to ban the movie ‘The Kerala Story’. This is to avoid any incident of hatred and violence, and to maintain peace in the state.”
“What is The Kashmir files? it is to humiliate one section. What is The Kerala story?… It is a distorted story,” added Banerjee.