New Delhi, India Jan 26, 2018
Hindu right-wing groups have vandalized public and private properties and attacked cinema halls across five Indian states protesting against the release of Bollywood film “Padmaavat”.
Many Indian states ruled by the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), including Haryana, Gujarat, Bihar, and Rajasthan, have stepped up security after members of Karni Sena, a Rajput caste organization, ran amok in the past couple of days.
On Thursday, members of Hindu Karni Sena brandished swords, burned tires, stopped buses, vandalized shops and blocked roads in the states of Rajasthan and Bihar.
The period drama set in the 14th century has enraged the Rajput group who want the film to be banned for allegedly “disrespecting the sentiments of the community”.
The film, dogged by protests since its inception, was released on Thursday across the country after the Supreme Court lifted a ban on the film.
An attack on a school bus in Gurugram, a wealthy suburb of the capital, New Delhi, on Wednesday by members of the Rajput caste forced authorities to shut schools in and around the city ahead of the release.
