India slams BBC documentary on PM Modi as propaganda piece with an agenda

India has slammed the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Gujarat riots as a “propaganda piece” questioning the purpose and the agenda behind it.

Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi on Thursday said the BBC documentary has “not been screened in India” and “lacks objectivity”.

“If anything, this film or documentary is a reflection on the agency and individuals that are peddling this narrative again. It makes us wonder about the purpose of this exercise and the agenda behind it. Frankly, we don’t wish to dignify such efforts,” the MEA spokesperson said in his comment on the BBC documentary.

“Do note that this has not been screened in India…We think that this is a propaganda piece, designed to push a particular discredited narrative. The bias, lack of objectivity and continuing colonial mindset is blatantly visible,” he added.

Youtube has removed BBC’s controversial documentary from circulation. The Google-owned online video streaming service removed the series on Wednesday, according to Scroll.in.

India sees a sinister design behind the BBC pushing an agenda at the behest of the UK spy agency, according to sources.

Meanwhile, the series has received flak in the UK with House of Lords Member Lord Rami Ranger condemning the British broadcaster.

In a tweet, Rami condemned BBC’s biased reporting and said, “@BBC You have caused a great deal of hurt to over a billion Indians; It insults a democratically elected @PMOIndia Indian Police & the Indian judiciary. We condemn the riots and loss of life & also condemn your biased reporting.”

Calling the programme against Modi “ill thought-out”, he also said it was an insult to the “largest democracy” of the world.

Several Twitter users who also raised complaints regarding the docu-series suggested the BBC should make a series on the 1943 Bengal famine, which led to 3 million deaths due to malnutrition under the then British prime minister Winston Churchill.

One user suggested that BBC should start ‘UK: The Churchill Question’ while another asked the broadcaster to focus on the UK.