India sacks movie censor chief over bribery charge

Published August 21, 2014
Rakesh Kumar, the head of the India’s film censorship board, is produced before a court in Mumbai. – Photo by AP
Rakesh Kumar, the head of the India’s film censorship board, is produced before a court in Mumbai. – Photo by AP

MUMBAI: India has removed the chief executive of its film censorship board after he was arrested on accusations he took a bribe to clear a movie for screening.

Rakesh Kumar was arrested on Monday in Mumbai, the centre of the Bollywood movie industry, on charges of taking Rs70,000 ($1,155) to provide Central Broad of Film Certification clearance for a film.

"He (Kumar)has been removed from his charge," an official from the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, which overseas the censorship board, told AFP Wednesday on condition of anonymity.

India's new Prime Minister Narendra Modi ran on a platform of zero-tolerance of corruption and has repeatedly pledged to curb the graft and red tape that have plagued state organisations for decades.

Kumar took over as the board's chief executive earlier this year. Soon afterwards he told the Mumbai Mirror newspaper there was a "huge backlog of films that needs to be cleared as we are short-staffed".

The resulting delays to a cinema release carry a potentially huge revenue loss for India's rapidly expanding multi-billion-dollar movie industry.

Kumar will appear in court in Mumbai on Thursday. Two other people connected to the censorship board have also been arrested and will appear in court on Wednesday.

Stringent guidelines drawn up by India's censor board include warnings placed on film scenes deemed to glamorise smoking, while shots depicting extreme violence are banned.

Opinion

Editorial

Aid dependency
Updated 03 Mar, 2025

Aid dependency

Govts need to increase funding in critical areas such as healthcare that have been affected by USAID shake-up.
Failing women
03 Mar, 2025

Failing women

OUR justice system has truly failed to protect women, a recent SSDO report has revealed. With conviction rates...
Cold world
03 Mar, 2025

Cold world

WESTERN countries do not have a heart for poor, non-white migrants. A recent BBC News report comprising leaked ...
The vanquished
Updated 02 Mar, 2025

The vanquished

A system of justice that is publicly perceived to be skewed cannot deliver judgements that the public will accept unquestioningly as objective and just.
Cricket overhaul
02 Mar, 2025

Cricket overhaul

PAKISTAN’S team management has pleaded for time and patience. Cricket head coach Aaqib Javed took responsibility...
Local representation?
02 Mar, 2025

Local representation?

THE disdain that major political parties harbour towards local governments is no secret. No party in power wants to...