The Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government on Tuesday declared the controversial “The Kerala Story” film tax-free in Uttar Pradesh.
In a tweet in Hindi, the CM said, “The Kerala Story will be made tax-free in the state.”
Directed by Sudipto Sen, the film claims to depict real-life stories of women who were converted to Islam and recruited by terror outfit ISIS. The filmmakers initially claimed that 32,000 women from Kerala had joined the Islamic State, but when asked for evidence, they altered the trailer to state the movie was a “compilation of the true stories of three young girls”.
Several critics have called the film “propaganda”.
The film also reached the courts, with petitions filed in the Supreme Court as well as Kerala High Court, seeking a ban on the controversial film. However, both courts refused to order a stay.
Reacting to the decision, Deputy CM Brajesh Pathak said, “Making ‘The Kerala Story’ tax-free is a very good decision. I want the people of Uttar Pradesh to watch this film and understand how our sisters have suffered. We will also go and watch the film. The people in West Bengal will not accept the ban on this film.”
The development comes a day after West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee decided to ban the film, citing threat to law and order in the state. “What is “The Kashmir Files”? it is to humiliate one section. What is “The Kerala Story”?… It is a distorted story,” she said, as quoted by ANI.
Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan had called the film “nothing but a clutch of blatant lies” and a product of the Sangh Parivar’s “factory of lies”.
The film was released in theatres on May 5, and the next day, Madhya Pradesh also declared the film tax-free. CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan tweeted, “The film ‘The Kerala Story’ exposing the horrific truth of terrorism is being made tax-free in Madhya Pradesh.”