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The government of India has finally got its way and managed to convince YouTube to take down BBC documentary India’s Daughter. It’s amazing, the amount of effort the Narendra Modi-led government actually put in to get the controversial film based on Nirbhaya gangrape case banned. Do they really think our democracy is so weak that one documentary will make it crumble?
Congrats. World’s largest democracy. RT @IndianExpress Just in: YouTube takes down BBC’s’India’s Daughter’ documentary after govt request.
— SapanVerma (@sapanv) March 5, 2015
Big Brotherly Pressure?
Another interesting observation from the entire chain of events is how Nirbhaya’s father’s view about the documentary seems to have changed, as if Big Brother was whispering in his ear. In an earlier NDTV story, he is quoted saying: ‘Everyone should watch the film. If a man can speak like that in jail, imagine what he would say if he was walking free.’ The documentary exposes what is happening. If the country has taken a decision, we have to accept it. (ALSO READ: India’s Daughter on Youtube: Nirbhaya’s father and B-town celebs support BBC documentary)
He was also quoted saying: ‘Talking in Parliament does not help. Why are the convicts still alive? Why have they not been hanged yet? Who are they to tell a woman what to wear or what to do? How will the campaign ‘BetiPadao, BetiBachao’ (educate, save our daughters) work if our daughters are not alive?’
Nirbhaya’s mother had also said: ‘Why can’t the government take action against lawyers who talk about my daughter like that?’ She also felt that documentary would highlight the reality. ‘I feel now that whether the rapists are punished or not, our family will certainly be hanged.’
Meanwhile in a later TOI story (which is a PTI copy), her father seems to have changed his stance saying: ‘Despite clearly telling them not to make the name and photo of our daughter public, they have gone ahead with it and this is not right… We will take legal action against this’, the father of the victim told PTI.
He was also quoted saying: ‘BBC has thrown a challenge to the Indian government and we are confident that they will be given a suitable reply soon.’ He also claimed he was happy with Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh’s stance and ‘the alacrity with which he has responded and urged the central government to also pursue the matter in the Supreme Court so that suitable punishment is given to the convicts at the earliest.’ What’s most interesting is that the Big Brotherly pressure is quite reminiscent of George Orwell’s 1984, where the government told the people who to do and even think. Come on guys, the poor man has experienced enough grief, can’t you let him live peacefully?
The problem with these pressure tactics or the need to ban is the simple fact that the internet didn’t exist back then! By trying to ban the documentary, the government only helped draw attention to it, which in turn led to worldwide coverage.
The story so far
It all started with a documentary by Leslee Udwin which for some reason irked our nation’s COO (Chief Offended Officer) Arnab Goswami who went on the offensive against NDTV which had planned to air the video. This garnered enough attention to bother the Home Ministry and police.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh said, ‘I have spoken to Information and Broadcasting Ministry and wrote letter to External Affairs Ministry as well.’ Rajnath Singh said: ‘The condition was given to shoot the interview for social purpose and not for commercial use. A legal notice was issued to them when the jail authorities came to know that it violated the conditions. The permission to shoot the documentary was given with conditions.’
He added: ‘The documentary film was shown to jail authorities where it was noticed that the documentary film depicts the comments of the convict which are highly derogatory to dignity of women.’ There’s even talk of legal action against those involved with the documentary.
The BBC however refused to bow down and telecast the video ahead of schedule and it also found its way into YouTube. While one of the videos has been taken down, there are lots of other YT channels that have the video. And if you try hard enough, I am sure you will find the torrent (do it while you’re searching for the Fifty Shades of Grey torrent).
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