'Appalled': Congress MP Shashi Tharoor Condemns Delhi University’s Move To Suspend Students For Watching BBC Modi Documentary

Expressing his strong displeasure over the incident, the Kerala Congress MP said that he was appalled by the “shocking decision” taken by Delhi University against its students.

NEW DELHI: Kerala Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has strongly condemned Delhi University for suspending two students for two years for watching the controversial BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Expressing his strong displeasure over the incident, the Kerala Congress MP said that he was appalled by the “shocking decision” taken by Delhi University against its student. He also said that the move to suspend the student in a democracy is a “disgrace & a betrayal of everything a university should stand for. Shame!”

“As a @Delhiuniversit alum committed to academic freedom & independence of thought, I am appalled by this shocking decision. To suspend a student for two years for watching a documentary in a democracy is a disgrace & a betrayal of everything a university should stand for. Shame!,” he tweeted.

As a @Delhiuniversit alum committed to academic freedom & independence of thought, I am appalled by this shocking decision. To suspend a student for two years for watching a documentary in a democracy is a disgrace & a betrayal of everything a university should stand for. Shame! pic.twitter.com/cpwVLr9OQb

— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) March 21, 2023

The reaction from Tharoor came after Delhi University suspended NSUI leader and Ph.D. scholar Lokesh Chugh and another student Ravinder for screening the BBC documentary on the campus.

The controversial BBC documentary on Gujarat riots - 'India: The Modi Question' which has triggered a bitter political storm in the country, was screened at Delhi University despite the ban by the Centre.

NSUI and Bhim Army Student Federation screened the controversial BBC documentary. The action was taken on the recommendation of a committee set up by Delhi University to probe the incident. The committee has recommended punishment for eight students. Two of the eight have been suspended for a year and the rest gave been given less strict punishment.

Tharoor had earlier commented that India’s sovereignty is not fragile just because the BBC had come out with a contentious documentary on the 2002 Gujarat riots.

What Is The BBC Documentary About?

The two-part documentary, India: the Modi Question, is a two-part series examining the rising communal tensions in Gujarat when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the state's chief minister in 2002. 

The first episode tracks PM Modi's first steps into politics, including his rise through the ranks of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to his appointment as chief minister of the western state of Gujarat.

The documentary highlights a previously unpublished report, obtained by the BBC from the British Foreign Office, which raises questions about PM Modi's actions during the riots that had broken out after a train carrying Hindu pilgrims the day before was set on fire, killing dozens. The report claims that Modi was "directly responsible" for the "climate of impunity" that enabled the violence.

PM Modi has long rejected accusations that he had any responsibility for the violence and never apologised for the riots. The BJP government at the Centre has strongly criticised the BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his alleged role in the 2002 Gujarat riots for which he has been given a clean chit by the Supreme Court of India.

Calling it “propaganda to defame India”, the Centre has banned the screening of the controversial BBC documentary anywhere in the country. However, the docuseries has been screened at several universities in some states despite the ban.