CBFC Flags Umar Khalid Documentary Screening at IIIT-Hyderabad; Event Called Off

A proposed screening of a documentary on jailed activist Umar Khalid at IIIT-Hyderabad appears to have been called off after the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) flagged the programme, noting that showing an uncertified film in public would breach the Cinematograph Act in the absence of a specific exemption.

The film, Prisoner No. 626710 is Present, is directed by Lalit Vachani. A group of students had scheduled it for 8 pm on Friday at the institute's KRB Auditorium.

In a post on X, the CBFC said the public exhibition of a documentary that has not received its certification amounts to a violation of the Cinematograph Act unless an exemption has been specifically sought. The board tagged IIIT-Hyderabad and said the institute's authorities may take note of the matter for necessary action.

Students have decided to cancel the screening, sources said.

The invitation for the event described it as being held on the occasion of "Political Prisoners' Day", and referred to the death anniversary of Jatindra Nath Das, a comrade of Bhagat Singh who died after a prolonged hunger strike in Lahore jail in 1929.

The development comes after a planned screening of the same documentary at the National Law School of India University (NLSIU) in Bengaluru was postponed. That decision followed objections from the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), which argued that permitting the screening would amount to using the campus for political propaganda. The student committee postponed the screening citing "logistical and security considerations", adding that it would be held later in the trimester.

The documentary is based on Khalid, a former JNU research scholar who was arrested in September 2020 in connection with the alleged larger conspiracy behind the northeast Delhi riots. He was charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and other provisions in the case, and has remained in custody since his arrest.