Ram Gopal Varma appears before Hyderabad police in obscenity case

Ram Gopal Varma

Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma on Saturday appeared before Hyderabad police in connection with a case of obscenity booked against him for his movie "God, Sex and Truth", and also for allegedly insulting the modesty of a woman. The filmmaker, whose controversial movie with American porn star Mia Malkova was released on internet last month, appeared before the officials of Central Crime Station (CCS) in response to the notice served on him. The police officials questioned him about the allegations made against him by women activists.

On January 25, a day before the release of the movie, Varma was booked by the CCS. A case under section 67 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 was booked against him for publishing or transmitting obscene material in electronic form. The filmmaker was also booked under sections 506 and 509 of Indian Penal Code for allegedly making personal comments against women activists during the debate on the movie on some television channels. When activists accused him of promoting obscenity, Varma allegedly offered to make similar movies with them. He has been charged with insulting the modesty of a woman.

The CCS this week issued fresh notice on Varma as he could not appear before the officials earlier. Women's organizations in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh had staged protest last month demanding ban on the release of the movie on web and Varma's immediate arrest. The activists alleged that Varma released the movie on web to avoid the certification by authorities. They said the filmmaker is portraying woman as a sex object and promoting pornography.

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