Panel set up to study 'Aarakshan'

Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Thursday constituted a committee to examine the demand by the Andhra Pradesh Scheduled Castes Welfare Association to ban the Hindi film Aarakshan.

The Chief Minister ordered the committee to take note of the Association’s demand and see if the points raised by the team which called on him at the Secretariat earlier were legitimate and could incite violence.

Former Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president Mallu Ravi told media persons that the Chief Minister has assured to take steps to ban the controversial film ‘Aarakshan’ in Andhra Pradesh in view of certain controversial scenes in it which might evoke violence.

Earlier, alleging that it depicted Dalits in poor light, leaders of the Andhra Pradesh Scheduled Castes Welfare Association had demanded that the state government immediately ban the film.

The delegation of the SC Welfare Association met Chief Secretary SV Prasad and submitted a memorandum to him, asking him to take immediate steps to stop the screening of the controversial film.

The film is directed by Prakash Jha with the high profile star Amitabh Bachchan in the main role. His co-star is Saif Ali Khan.