Chennai: A popular Tamil magazine group, Vikatan, had courted trouble after it published a digital cartoon depicting Prime Minister Narendra Modi with his hands and legs chained and seated in the company of US President Donald Trump. The publication had complained that its website was inaccessible to readers since late Saturday evening and was reportedly blocked.
The cartoon was published on February 10 in Vikatan Plus, a digital product of the several decades old Ananda Vikatan group against the backdrop of illegal immigrants from India being sent back on an aircraft from the US with handcuffs.
The magazine said following this BJP State president K Annamalai had lodged a complaint with the Union Government. “In this situation, several readers have reported that they are unable to access the Vikatan website. However, there has been no official confirmation from government sources about the website being blocked,” it said in a post on X.
“For nearly a century, Vikatan has stood firmly in support of freedom of expression. We have always operated with the principle of upholding free speech and will continue to do so,” the post said.
Amidst criticism from advocates of free speech, the magazine’s website www.vikatan.com became accessible to readers by late Sunday afternoon.
Earlier, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin and several political leaders condemned the reported blocked of the Vikatan website. “It not befitting democracy to block media for opinions. This is yet another example of the fascist nature of the BJP Government (at the Centre),” Stalin said in a social media post.
