CPM Rajya Sabha member John Brittas on Wednesday wrote to Union home minister Amit Shah seeking stringent action against the makers of a film that claimed 32,000 girls were converted to Islam in Kerala and taken to West Asia to join ISIS.
The claim, decried by non-BJP parties in Kerala, has been made in the teaser of a Hindi movie titled The Kerala Story produced by Vipul Shah and directed by Sudipto Sen.
“The teaser claims to be depicting the story of 32,000 women from Kerala who are radicalised to join ISIS terrorist group, which is absolutely rubbish and fallacious,” Brittas wrote.
Kerala’s director-general of police, Anil Kant, has directed the Thiruvananthapuram police commissioner to file an FIR against the makers of the film that has been trending on social media since Monday.
Tamil Nadu-based journalist, Aravindakshan B.R., has written to the chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), Prasoon Joshi, calling for a ban unless the producer and director submit documents to prove the claim. He also wrote to Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan to book them.
“Such dissemination of grossly false information may lead to inconceivable repercussions and unrest in society and the same will amount to defaming the state as well,” Brittas cautioned.
“It is pertinent to note that the appalling attempt to assert that 32,000 women had been converted to Islam and sent to Syria and Yemen, is not only highly deplorable but also devoid of any merits,” Brittas said.
“The Union home ministry puts the number at 155 all over the country,” he added. The teaser features actor Adah Sharma clad in a burka.
“My name was Shalini Unnikrishnan. I wanted to serve people by becoming a nurse. Now I am Fathima Ba, an ISIS terrorist in jail in Afghanistan. And I am not alone. There are 32,000 girls like me who were converted and buried in the deserts of Syria and Yemen. The most dangerous game is being played in Kerala to convert a normal girl into a terrorist. That too, openly. Is there nobody to stop them? This is my story. This is the story of those 32,000 girls. This is The Kerala Story,” the actor says.
Brittas termed it as a sinister plot to hurt religious feelings and drive a wedge between communities.
