India orders TV stations not to give rapist a platform

Indian authorities ordered television stations Tuesday not to broadcast a documentary about a gang rape on a New Delhi bus in which one of the attackers blames the victim and says she could have avoided being killed if she had not fought back, a government official said. The order followed an outcry over giving a convicted prisoner a nationwide platform to express repugnant views about a horrific crime that shocked Indians and prompted hundreds of thousands to take to the streets in protest.

What is there in spreading the views of a rapist?

Vrinda Adiga, activist

The documentary, “India’s Daughter” by British filmmaker Leslee Udwin (pictured above), was to be shown on Sunday, International Women’s Day, in India as well as in Britain, Denmark, Sweden and several other countries. The New Delhi Television, a private news channel, had indicated it would air the program. Later Tuesday, India’s Information and Broadcasting Ministry ordered television channels not to air the documentary, a government official said on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to talk to reporters. Activists noted that Singh showed no remorse for the crime, and that broadcasting his comments would be an insult to the memory of the woman.

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