'The Kerala story' based on Islamophobic propaganda, baseless claims: CPI MP Binoy Viswam

New Delhi: Communist Party of India (CPI) Rajya Sabha MP Binoy Viswam on Wednesday wrote to Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur about the upcoming film 'The Kerala Story', claiming that the movie is based on "Islamophobic propaganda" and intends to malign the image of Kerala.

The CPI leader said the film's official trailer is nothing but a politically motivated hatred campaign against Kerala and the Muslim community. In his letter to Anurag Thakur, Viswam said, "'The Kerala Story' is based on baseless claims, fake news and Islamophobic propaganda and intends to malign the image of the state of Kerala and its people.

"The film claims to unearth the story of 32,000 women who went missing in the state of Kerala. This claim is based on lies and extrapolations. The film deliberately misquotes and misinterprets statements by the then Chief Ministers of the state namely VS Achudananthan and Oommen Chandy. The statement made by VS Achudananthan has been translated incorrectly to malign the Muslim community," he added.
The Upper House MP from Kerala said that Oommen Chandy never mentioned any annual figure of conversions nor he mentioned women joining ISIS terror group or forced conversions.

He said it is evident that the film is misrepresenting statements by both the chief Ministers to mislead. Taking a cue, several media and YouTube channels have also started a tirade against Kerala, Viswam said.

"People of Kerala in general have opposed this politically motivated attempt to slander the state in a united voice. The so-called 'Love Jihad' is a baseless Islamophobic conspiracy theory aimed at polarization. The Union Home Ministry, through MoS G Kishan Reddy, on February 2020, has informed the Parliament that no cases of 'love jihad' have been reported. The narrative being propelled by 'The Kerala Story' is thus, clearly based on lies and twisting facts and aims at fueling hatred. It is dangerously harmful for communal harmony in Kerala in particular and the country in general," he said.
CPI national council secretary Binoy Viswam further said that Information and Broadcasting Ministry has a crucial role to play in educating and sensitizing people on the secular ethos of the Constitution.

"I urge you to initiate an enquiry into the fallacious claims being made through the movie. Makers should corroborate their narrative with facts before the movie is released to the general public in the best interest of amity, harmony and truth," he said.
'The Kerala Story' has become a topic for discussion around the numbers being exaggerated in the trailer of the film.

Helmed by Sudipto Sen and produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah, the film is all set to hit the theatres on May 5, 2023.
'The Kerala Story' stars Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Siddhi Idnani and Sonia Balani in the lead roles.
The trailer of Sen's film 'The Kerala Story' came under fire as it claimed that 32,000 girls from the state went missing and later joined the terrorist group, ISIS. (ANI)