MADURAI: Acting on a complaint lodged by a Puthiya Tamizhagam functionary, the city police on Thursday registered an FIR against documentary filmmaker Divya Bharathi for inciting communal clashes through her documentary film Kakkoos.
On July 31, S Baskarmathuram, State Youth Wing Secretary of Puthiya Tamizhagam, had lodged a complaint with the Othakadai Police claiming that the caste to which he belongs has been wrongly portrayed in the documentary.
The case has been registered under three sections, including Indian Penal Code Section 153A (Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of race), Section 505 (1)(b) (Whoever makes or circulates any statement with intent to cause fear among any section of the public thereby inducing to commit an offence against public tranquillity) and under the Information Technology Act (2006) Section 66F (Cyber terrorism).
The complainant, who is also a lawyer, said that he plans to submit a petition to the Director General of Police in Chennai on Saturday, seeking action against the filmmaker under the National Security Act.
He also noted that he would file a writ in the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Monday, seeking the removal of the documentary film from YouTube.
In his earlier complaint, Bhaskarmathuram had stated that the documentary falsely projects that his community members have taken up manual scavenging as an occupation, while in reality the people are primarily engaged in agricultural activities.
This comes at a time when several protests are being staged seeking the exclusion of the community from the Scheduled Caste list, read the complaint.
The complainant also alleged that Divya belongs to the banned Naxal and terrorist groups that disrupt communal harmony and sovereignty of the nation.
Stating that the documentary was shot with a view to demean his community, thereby provoking communal clashes, Bhaskarmathuram sought legal action against the filmmaker.