New Delhi, Mar 15 (PTI) BJP MLA Vijender Gupta on Thursday demanded that "The Kashmir Files" film be made tax-free in Delhi and Punjab, saying people from economically weaker sections are unable to afford tickets for the movie.

Both Delhi and Punjab have AAP governments, with Arvind Kejriwal heading the government in the national capital and Bhagwant Mann in that state.

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In a statement, Gupta warned that if his demand is not met, he would stage a sit-in outside the Delhi Chief Minister's Office.

The recently-released film, which is based on the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the Valley in the 1990s, has been made tax-free by several states, including Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.

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The MLA said that the film has brought the issue of "genocide and ethnic cleansing of Kashmiri Hindus to the forefront".

"People from economically weaker sections of society are unable to afford such an exorbitant (ticket) price. The movie has already been declared tax-free by Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. The people of Delhi are being forced to go and watch the movie in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh," Gupta said.

He said that if Kejriwal fails to declare the movie tax-free in the AAP-ruled states, he would sit on a dharna at the Delhi Chief Minister's Office.

"For years, the plight of Kashmiri Hindus was kept hidden by continuous whitewashing of facts. But the movie in discussion has put forth undeniable facets of the dark days that led to more than five lakh Kashmiri Pandits turning refugees in their own country," Gupta said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)