BJP does this for 'cheap political gains': Cong on UP making 'The Kerala Story' tax-free

The Congress on Tuesday hit out at the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh over its announcement that "The Kerala Story" will be tax-free in the state and accused the BJP of doing this for "cheap political gains".

Adityanath announced on Tuesday that the "The Kerala Story" will be tax-free in Uttar Pradesh. The announcement comes days after the Madhya Pradesh government said it will give tax-free status to the film. Also, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has ordered an immediate ban on its screening while in Tamil Nadu, multiplexes cancelled screenings of the controversial film from Sunday.

Replying to questions at a press conference at the AICC headquarters here, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said, "It is very unfortunate for the country that such files are coming out on various states such as Gujarat, Bihar and Kerala whose purpose is to divide, incite and talk about communities. So you can make such things on all states, some states that want to main a stable ground will combat it, while some will encourage it."

"UP has made it (The Kerala Story) tax-free but you are not looking at the all India level as to what is happening to the country. You are not seeing that you are indulging in divisive politics, for cheap political gains. Every right-thinking person in public life should think about that. The BJP does this only for cheap political gains," he said.

Asked about the ban imposed by the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government, Singhvi said this falls in the domain of the state government and the law in question is at the state level. Directed by Sudipto Sen, the film depicts how women from Kerala were forced to convert to Islam and recruited by the terror group Islamic State (IS). The film, which was released on May 5, has kicked up a political storm.