| India: The Modi Question | |
|---|---|
 Title card | |
| Genre | Documentary |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 2 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Richard Cookson Mike Radford |
| Running time | 60 minutes (per episode) |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC Two BBC iPlayer |
| Release | 17 January – 24 January 2023 |
| Infobox instructions (only shown in preview) | |
India: The Modi Question is a 2023 two-part documentary series aired by BBC Two about the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his relationship with the Muslim minority in the country. The first part covers Modi's early political career and his role in the 2002 Gujarat riots, which occurred when he was the chief minister of Gujarat.[1] It discusses documents found by the BBC, including a UK government report stating that the violence in Gujarat showed "all the hallmarks of an ethnic cleansing".[2] The second part examines the activities of Modi's administration following his first re-election in 2019. It covers a series of controversial policies, including the revocation of Kashmir's autonomy and a new citizenship law.[3] It also depicts the violent response to protests against the new laws, and the aftermath of the 2020 Delhi riots.[3]
The Government of India banned the documentary from being screened, describing it as "hostile propaganda and anti-India garbage",[4] and asked social media sites to take down snippets of the documentary shared by users.[2] In response to the government's ban, the BBC said that the documentary had been researched "rigorously", and that it depicted a "wide range of voices", including the opinions of figures within Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party.[5] The ban was frequently circumvented, and several student organisations held screenings in various parts of the country. The ban was criticised by opposition politicians as censorship,[6] and described as an assault on freedom of the press by commentators and human rights groups.[7]
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
IE2023was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b "India invokes emergency laws to ban BBC Modi documentary". the Guardian. 23 January 2023. Archived from the original on 23 January 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
Hindu 2023was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Why India has banned this documentary about its Prime Minister Narendra Modi". SBS News. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
- ^ "India government criticises BBC's Modi documentary". BBC News. 20 January 2023. Archived from the original on 23 January 2023. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
- ^ "The Modi Question: Government blocks YouTube videos, tweets sharing BBC documentary on PM Modi". www.dnaindia.com. Archived from the original on 23 January 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
NPR 2023was invoked but never defined (see the help page).