MUKTSAR--Apprehending serious law and order problem in the state following the release of controversial film ‘Messenger of God’, featuring Dera Sacha Sauda sect head Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Monday said that the screening of the movie has been banned on the advisory of the Government of India (GoI).
“The screening of this movie has been banned on the advisory of the Government of India (GoI)”, Badal said at Muktsar.
Interacting with the media persons on the sidelines of the Sangat Darshan programme of Lambi Assembly segment in Muktsar district, the Chief Minister said that the reports of intelligence agencies of both the State and Centre governments had clearly said that the release of this movie could have led to serious repercussions in terms of law and order problem in the state.
Reiterating the firm commitment of the state government to maintain peace and amity, he said that it was their onerous duty to sustain the hard earned peace in Punjab at every cost. “We have received advisory from the Central government to ban this movie and thus the state government acted accordingly in the larger public interest,” added Badal.
The Punjab Government on January 17 had put a ban on the MSG. “The Punjab Government has decided to stop screening of the movie ‘Messenger of God (MSG)’ in the state,” Harcharan Bains, Advisor to the Punjab Chief Minister.
Also, in Sirsa (Haryana), tension gripped where authorities imposed prohibitory orders on Monday in view of protests against the film.
“We have imposed Section 144 (banning assembly of five or more people in an area) at a few places in Sirsa, including near a Sikh shrine, “Sirsa Deputy Commissioner Nikhil Gajraj said.
Assembly of people has been banned at few places in Sirsa to maintain law and order in the wake of protests by Sikh organisations against the film.
Meanwhile, certain Sikhs gathered at a Gurudwara on city police station road to register their protest against the film. Sirsa is the place where the headquarter of Dera Sacha Sauda is located.
“We want a ban on the movie…we are strongly against the movie, which if released, can cause tension in the society and hurt religious sentiments of many sections,” Jagdish Singh Jhinda, President of Haryana Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee (HSGMC), said.
He warned that if the film is screened by any of the theatre or multiplex in Sirsa or elsewhere in Haryana it will be the owners who will be responsible for the consequences.
The Indian Express
