BJP leaders giving communal twist to Mersal movie issue, accuses SDPI

Addressing a press meet, Baqavi said that Mersal movie, starred by Vijay, is an ordinary movie but because of the BJP leaders the movie has become a commercial success. The comments on politics in the movie should be countered politically, but the BJP leaders had threatened the producer and the director to remove the lines criticising the Union government. 

Unable to face criticism, the BJP leaders had taken up the communal card and had called Vijay as Joseph Vijay, which is completely unnecessary. When the BJP leaders have the right to support the government schemes, the common man has the rights to criticise the same. 

People are in fact boiling over the GST issue because of the trouble they face after the tax regime’s implementation. Even veteran leaders of the BJP have started opposing GST and are now writing articles in the media. The leaders should silence the criticism within the party and then indulge in silencing others, said Baqavi.

He also said that a few BJP leaders are saying that Muslim parties were against movies like Kamal starrer Vishwaroopam and Vijay starrer Thuppakki and similarly they are opposing Mersal. Both the issues cannot be compared, as in movies like Vishwaroopam the verses of Quran were wrongly interpreted and in Thuppakki all the Muslims in general were shown as terrorists. 

Though Muslims were shown as terrorists in many movies they had not opposed it, but the two movies had acted against the sentiments of Muslims. However, in Mersal, only the schemes of the government were being criticised, but the BJP is giving a communal tinge to it, said Baqavi.

BJP cadre barged into a theatre screening Mersal on Sunday and shouted slogans against the movie at Kovilpatti in Thoothukudi district. The movie, since its release, had been widely criticised by the BJP leaders for its anti-government dialogues. However, the movie had garnered wide support from the opposition parties and even the BJP leaders were trolled on social media for opposing it. They said that the dialogues in the movie, which are critical of the BJP government and its schemes, have tarnished the image of the party. 

Saying so, they picked up a quarrel with the men in the theatre. However, police prevented the cadre from entering the theatre and arrested them. In the meantime, in Karaikudi, the BJP cadre protested against actor Vishal for his reported comments against BJP National president H Raja. Earlier, Raja had said that he had watched Mersal online. Vishal condemning him asked whether Raja supported online piracy. BJP men burnt the photo of Vishal in Karaikudi protesting against his condemnation and shouted slogans against him.