Padmavati row: Arun Chaturvedi backtracks on his promise

JAIPUR: Social justice and empowerment minister Dr Arun Chaturvedi took a somersault Thursday, a day after he promised a delegation of Rashtriya Rajput Karani Sena that shooting of controversial film ‘Padmavati’ has been banned in state and will be released only after seeking objections from experts and Rajput Karani Sena.
The minister’s statement which came on the same day the set of the film was vandalised by miscreants in Kohlapur, Maharashtra was trending on social media and was ridiculed.He was forced to backtrack on his statement, given as a press release, facing a barrage of criticism from media and social media.
Chaturvedi, while talking to media outside the Assembly Thursday, said there is no official ban on shooting of the film in Rajasthan or any proposal to screen it to Karani Sena.
However, official press release, issued by his department Wednesday after meeting a delegation comprising various caste groups including Rashtriya Rajput Karni Sena seeking reservation to economically backward classes(EBCs), clearly states that shooting of the film has been banned and the film would not be released without getting objections of Rajput Karani Sena cleared.
Karani Sena has been in the news recently for vandalising the shooting of Sanjay Leela Bhansali period drama ‘Padmavati’ in Rajasthan over alleged distortion of history demanding pre-censorship of period films based on historic figures forcing the producer to shift its shooting from Rajasthan to Maharashtra.
The outfit had threatened the shooting of Ashutosh Gowarikar’s historical drama ‘Jodhaa Akbar’ and later protested against its screening, with the film finally not being released in the state.