Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath stated that love jihad is an agenda of undeclared terrorism against humanity. The UP CM said this after watching The Kerala Story along with his ministerial colleagues at a special screening at the Lok Bhavan in Lucknow on Friday.
आज अपने मंत्रिमंडल के माननीय सदस्यों के साथ स्पेशल स्क्रीनिंग में 'The Kerala Story' फिल्म देखी।
— Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) May 12, 2023
इस फिल्म से जुड़े सभी लोगों का हार्दिक अभिनंदन एवं उन्हें शुभकामनाएं! pic.twitter.com/ySyvud1hqP
The Bharatiya Janata Party leader said, “The Kerala Story draws the attention of the entire nation to the conspiracy like love jihad. The entire society must be made aware of this distortion. A commendable and brave effort has been made in this regard by the film’s producer, director, and entire team.”
He further said that the UP administration has a zero-tolerance attitude for any distortion that undermines social cohesion, imperils national security, or endangers humanity. “That’s why our government has effectively implemented the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act on November 27, 2020, by first making an ordinance and then a duly enacted law against perversion like love jihad,” Yogi Adityanath asserted.
He also held a meeting with people associated with the movie including lead actor Adah Sharma, director Sudipto Sen, and producer Vipul Amrutlal Shah in Lucknow, on May 10.
आज लखनऊ स्थित सरकारी आवास पर 'The Kerala Story' फिल्म की टीम के साथ शिष्टाचार भेंट हुई। pic.twitter.com/bfj7sswOTU
— Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) May 10, 2023
On May 9, the chief minister announced The Kerala Story to be tax-free in the state, following the two other BJP-administrated states of Madhya Pradesh and Haryana.
'The Kerala Story' उत्तर प्रदेश में टैक्स फ्री की जाएगी।
— Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) May 9, 2023
According to official statistics, 433 cases have been reported in the state of Uttar Pradesh since the anti-conversion law came into effect in November 2020.
“Action has been taken against 1,471 accused, including a total of 1,229 accused named in these cases, and a total of 242 accused who came to light during the investigation in which 855 arrests have been made. According to the latest situation, 339 chargesheets have been sent to the court, and 184 victims have even confessed before the court that they were forcibly converted. Of these, 66 charges are related to minors,” revealed a government spokesperson.
In accordance with the legislation, violators incurred a one to five-year prison sentence as well as a Rs 15,000 fine. Additionally, under the statute, anybody found guilty of mass conversion is faced with a ten-year jail term.
The Kerala Story was released on May 5 amidst objections from Muslims, liberals, and the opposition parties. It managed to gross more than 80 crores at the Indian box office in the first seven days of its release and has already minted 100 crores worldwide.
The multilingual project is now running in 37 countries around the globe including the US and Canada. It is directed by Sudipto Sen, produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah, and features Adah Sharma in the lead role.
It follows the story of a Hindu girl, Shalini Unnikrishnan from Kerala who is brainwashed to accept Islam by her Muslim friend, gets married to a Muslim man, and goes to Syria along with her spouse to join ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) also known as IS (Islamic State) and is tortured there.
