Politics1 min read

'Very small issue': Fadnavis says Dia Mirza video row not at his level

By · Via Times of India · Published by Everything Blog

In short

The controversy originated during an eco-friendly Diwali campaign aimed at addressing Mumbai's deteriorating air quality, which featured several prominent figures such as Madhuri Dixit and Ajinkya Rahane. After facing online criticism and political objections, the civic body deleted only Mirza's video, which had urged citizens to refrain from bursting crackers on public streets. The Bombay High Court later ordered the restoration of the clip and voiced displeasure over political attacks against the actor. In response, leadership maintained that the municipal corporation holds full discretion over its social media decisions.

Key points

  • Maharashtra's chief minister defended the civic body's authority to manage and remove con…: Maharashtra's chief minister defended the civic body's authority to manage and remove content from its social media channels.
  • Mirza's anti-firecracker message was removed after facing backlash, even though the civic…: Mirza's anti-firecracker message was removed after facing backlash, even though the civic body kept videos from other participating celebrities.
  • The civic awareness initiative was originally launched to tackle growing public concerns…: The civic awareness initiative was originally launched to tackle growing public concerns regarding air pollution levels across Mumbai.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

MUMBAI: Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has dismissed the controversy over the removal of actor Dia Mirza's Diwali firecracker awareness video as a “very small issue”, saying the

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has the authority to decide what content stays on its social media platforms.

His remarks came a day after the Bombay high court directed the civic body to re-upload the video, which urged people against bursting firecrackers on public streets during Diwali.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Fadnavis said, "This is a very small issue. I believe the high court may have expressed its opinion, but the matter has not even gone to the high court. Deleting the video was the Mumbai Municipal Corporation's decision. The authority that manages the social media handle has the right to decide what content should be retained and what should be removed," he said.

"Dia Mirza may be a good actress, but she is not a major political figure in the country. Anyway, I feel these issues are not at my level," he added.

Bombay high court directs BMC to re-upload Diwali…

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