The International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad, cancelled a student-organised screening of a documentary about jailed activist Umar Khalid. The cancellation occurred hours after India’s film certification body publicly flagged the event as a legal violation. The Central Board of Film Certification stated on social media that the public exhibition of an uncertified documentary violates the Cinematograph Act without a specific exemption, and it called on the institute’s authorities to take action.
The institute’s director informed students by email that the screening and venue booking were cancelled, stating that uncertified films are not permitted to be screened anywhere on campus. The institute clarified that the event was organised by an informal student collective without official permission, and administrators stressed that neither the institute nor any recognised student bodies were connected to the proposed screening.
The documentary, titled “Prisoner No. 626710 is Present” and directed by Lalit Vachani, was scheduled to be shown on the evening of September 18 to mark the sixth anniversary of Khalid’s arrest, Political Prisoners’ Day, and the death anniversary of Jatindra Nath Das. Khalid has been in judicial custody for six years in connection with a conspiracy case linked to northeast Delhi violence in February 2020.