Rights groups to screen BBC film on Modi before White House visit
Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International are planning a private screening in Washington, two days before the Indian prime minister’s state visit.
Two human rights organizations have invited policymakers, journalists and analysts to a screening in Washington of a BBC documentary about Narendra Modi questioning the leadership of the Indian prime minister during the riots in Gujarat in 2002, ahead of his state visit to the White House.
Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have scheduled the private screening for June 20, two days before Modi’s official state visit, hosted by US President Joe Biden.
Announcing the screening on Monday, Human Rights Watch said it wanted it to serve as a reminder that the documentary was banned in India.
The two-part documentary, India: The Modi Question, focused on Modi’s leadership as chief minister of the western state of Gujarat during riots in 2002 that killed at least 1,000 people, most of them Muslims. Activists estimate the toll at more than double.
Modi has denied allegations that he has not done enough to stop the riots, and an inquiry commissioned by the Supreme Court has found no evidence to prosecute him.
The Indian government had reacted angrily to the documentary, which was released in January, calling it a “propaganda piece” and blocking the sharing of clips from it on social media.
The White House last month defended Modi’s planned state visit when asked about human rights issues in India. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden believes “this is an important relationship that we must continue and build on in the human rights field.”
Advocacy groups have expressed concern over what they see as a deteriorating human rights situation in India in recent years under Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), particularly with regard to the treatment of minorities, dissidents and journalists.
The government denies the allegations and says it is working for the upliftment of all groups.
Tax officials inspected BBC offices in New Delhi and Mumbai in February, and the Financial Crime Agency opened an investigation into the broadcaster in April over allegations of foreign exchange violations. A government adviser had said the inspection was not “vengeful”.
The BBC has previously said it is sticking to its reporting for the documentary, which has not aired in India, and that it “has no agenda”.