TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: Condemning the BJP government’s move to set up a tiatr censor board, the Opposition Congress has termed it as a move to muzzle the freedom of expression in the State and threatened to take to the streets if the government fails to scrap the proposal.
Addressing media Tuesday, Goa Pradesh Congress Committee general secretary Agnelo Fernandes said that the executive committee has unanimously resolved to denounce, condemn and strongly object to the government’s move to impose censorship on tiatr and Marathi dramas.
“We appreciate the creativity of nataks and tiatrs which are deeply embedded in traditional Goan art and assert that such acts should not be subjected to any censorship as it would transgress the freedom of expression guaranteed under our Indian Constitution,” Agnelo said.
The Congress termed the government’s move a clumsy and high-handed attempt to silence the tiatr community. “Why was BJP silent when this tiatr community came out openly against the then Congress government?” questioned the former Calangute MLA, arguing that it was the tiatr community that helped the BJP to come to power in 2012.
Around 400 tiatrists, upset over the proposed tiatr censor board, had on Monday petitioned Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar and asked that the proposal be scrapped as it would undermine the democratic process and curtail the freedom of expression.
