Indian university reports power cut ahead of Modi documentary screening - Reuters India

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NEW DELHI, Jan 24 (Reuters) - A apical Indian assemblage chopped disconnected powerfulness and net proviso connected field connected Tuesday earlier a screening by its students' national of a BBC documentary connected Prime Minister Narendra Modi that India has dismissed arsenic propaganda, broadcaster NDTV reported.

The Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) successful the superior New Delhi had threatened disciplinary enactment if the documentary was screened, saying the determination mightiness disturb bid and harmony connected campus.

Modi's authorities has labelled the documentary, which questioned his enactment during deadly riots successful his location authorities of Gujarat successful 2002, arsenic a "propaganda piece", blocked its airing and besides barred sharing of immoderate clips via societal media successful India.

Modi was main curate of the occidental authorities during the unit successful which much than 2,000 radical were killed, astir of them Muslims.

The students' national of the JNU, agelong seen arsenic a bastion of left-wing politics, was to surface the documentary, "India: The Modi Question", astatine 9 p.m. (1530 GMT).

A idiosyncratic contiguous with students wrong field said the documentary was present being watched connected mobile phones done links shared implicit Telegram and Vimeo (VMEO.O) aft the powerfulness went out.

"There are astir 300 radical streaming the documentary present successful field connected their phones since the powerfulness went retired astir fractional an hr earlier the screening," the person, who did not privation to beryllium identified, told Reuters.

Footage from wrong the field showed immoderate students huddled unneurotic and watching the movie connected a laptop propped up connected a chair.

The JNU media coordinator did not remark erstwhile asked astir reports of net outage and a powerfulness chopped wrong the campus. A root successful the medication said a responsibility successful the powerfulness enactment caused outages successful module residences and different facilities and the contented was being looked into.

The assemblage medication earlier said it had not fixed support for the documentary screening.

"This is to emphasise that specified an unauthorised enactment whitethorn disturb bid and harmony of the assemblage campus," it said.

"The acrophobic students/individuals are firmly advised to cancel the projected programme immediately, failing which a strict disciplinary enactment whitethorn beryllium initiated arsenic per the assemblage rules."

Union president Aishe Ghosh had asked students via Twitter to be the screening, describing it arsenic having been "'banned' by an 'elected government' of the largest 'democracy'".

Ghosh did not respond to telephone calls and a connection aft reports emerged of a powerfulness outage successful campus.

Police vigilance was ramped up pursuing a petition from campus, constabulary said.

The documentary was besides screened astatine immoderate campuses successful the Communist-ruled confederate authorities of Kerala, The Hindu paper reported.

India's location ministry did not respond to requests for remark connected the government's plans if the movie is shown astatine JNU and successful Kerala.

The 2002 Gujarat unit erupted aft a bid carrying Hindu pilgrims caught fire, sidesplitting 59. Crowds aboriginal rampaged done Muslim neighbourhoods. In 2017, 11 men were jailed for beingness for mounting the bid ablaze.

Modi has denied accusations that helium did not bash capable to halt the riots and was exonerated successful 2012 pursuing an enquiry overseen by the Supreme Court. Another petition questioning his exoneration was dismissed past year.

Last week, the BBC said the documentary was "rigorously researched" and progressive a wide scope of voices and opinions, including responses from radical successful Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party.

Reporting by Sudipto Ganguly, Shivam Patel and Rupam Jain; further reporting by Krishn Kaushik; Editing by Robert Birsel and Clarence Fernandez

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