Lakshadweep Filmmaker Has Been Charged With Sedition After Making A Remark About 'Bio-Weapons'

Local citizen and film activist Aisha Sultana was charged with sedition by Lakshadweep police on Thursday for referring to the Union Territory's administrator, Praful K Patel, as a bio-weapon being deployed by the Centre against the island's inhabitants.

On the basis of a complaint from BJP's Lakshadweep unit president C Abdul Khader Haji, a case was filed at Kavaratti police station under Section 124 A of the Indian Penal Code.

Khader's complaint referenced a recent debate on the Malayalam channel 'MediaOne TV' about the ongoing controversial reforms in Lakshadweep, in which Aisha allegedly claimed that the Centre was using Praful Patel as a 'bio-weapon on the islands, according to Khader. The BJP's Lakshadweep unit was outraged by the comments. BJP activists had also filed complaints against Aisha in Kerala.

Aisha, a filmmaker, has been at the forefront of opposition to the reforms and proposed legislation that has swept Lakshadweep and Kerala. She has been outspoken in her criticism of the Administrator's questionable actions, which have sparked outrage and protests across the islands.

Aisha wrote on Facebook that she had used the terminology bio-weapon in the TV channel debate, defending her contentious comment to the administrator. She had mentioned in her post that brought a sedition charge against her, but she would emphasize the truth will triumph. A BJP worker from Lakshadweep submitted the complaint. She will keep fighting for the land where she grew up. She clarified she is not scared of anyone. Now she will raise her voice, she penned.

On social media, the case against her has gotten a lot of attention.

Shashi Tharoor, a Congress member, claimed he was harassed because the phrase 'sedition' was misused.

K Bahir, the organization's spokesperson, said the cultural community in Lakshadweep would stand with her. On Thursday, the Lakshadweep Sahitya Pravarthaka Sangam expressed its support for Aisha. It is inappropriate to portray her as anti-national. She had reacted angrily to the administrator's harsh treatment. Patel's initiatives were responsible for Lakshadweep becoming a Covid-affected region.

Residents see Patel's controversial measures as shredding the social and cultural fabric of the islands, while the UT Administration claims they are intended at maintaining the safety and well-being of residents as well as promoting the islands as a tourism destination on par with the Maldives.