Amid raging controversy over the NCP MP Dr Amol Kolhe’s portrayal as Nathuram Godse and his party’s justification not to mix reel life with real life, the Congress party, which shares power with Shiv Sena and NCP in Maharashtra, on Sunday announced that it will request request Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to ban a movie titled ‘’Why I killed Gandhi.’’ The state Congress unit chief Nana Patole said portrayal of Mahatma Gandhi's murderer as hero is not acceptable.
Patole, who has already said that the Congress will not tolerate the glorification of Godse, said that India is known through Gandhi and his ideology of non-violence. In a short film titled 'Why I Killed Gandhi', Amol Kolhe plays the role of Nathuram Godse, the man who killed Mahatma Gandhi in 1948. Although the film was made in 2017, before Amol Kolhe joined NCP in 2019, it was released on an OTT platform on January 30 this year.
‘’Our country is known through Mahatma Gandhi and his ideology and he is celebrated worldwide. Congress will oppose and will request CM not to allow this movie's release in Maharashtra," said Patole.
Patole said that although Dr Kolhe is an artist, he is also a political party's MP and so he is expected to act more responsibly. It is unfortunate that by misusing his freedom as an artist, he has supported the assassination of the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, and glorified Nathuram.
‘’The attempt to make Nathuram Godse a hero is unprecedented. Even before this, people had expressed strong dislike and anger over the role of Godse played by some other actors. The explanation given by Dr Kolhe for playing the role of Nathuram is very inconsistent and unacceptable,’’ noted Patole. However, Dr Kolhe has clarified that he is a staunch supporter of the mahatma Gandhi’s thoughts and principles.
‘’People of a certain ideology in the country are constantly insulting Mahatma Gandhi by bringing Nathuram to life, but even after 75 years, the importance of Mahatma Gandhi's ideology has not reduced, instead many countries in the world are following his thought even today,’’ said Patole. However, he claimed that some people (without naming BJP) are working to erase the thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi but the people of this country can never forget Gandhi's thoughts and the sacrifices he made for the country.
Meanwhile, All India Cine Workers Association (AICWA) has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding a complete ban on the movie saying the film glorifies “Nathuram Godse the traitor and killer of the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi.”
