IC 814 Controversy: Netflix Assures Centre To Align Future Content With 'Nation's Sentiments', Anubhav Sinha Likely To Be Summoned

In a meeting regarding the controversial web series 'IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack,' Netflix India has assured the Centre that future content on the OTT platform will align with the "nation's sentiments."

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B) had summoned Netflix India's content head following controversy over the web series which portrays the 1999 hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight by Pakistani terrorists.

The controversy was sparked for using the hijackers' names as 'Shankar' and 'Bhola', which were their code names, and failing to reveal their real names to allegedly shield their Muslim identity.

While Netflix was reminded to be mindful of public religious sentiments and sensitivities, Ministry I&B is also reportedly planning to summon Anubhav Sinha, director of the web series.

Critics argue that the ISI handlers of the terrorists used Hindu aliases to craft a misleading narrative of 'Hindu terror,' but the director could have chosen a different set of names that represented the situation more accurately.

The original hijacking involved five terrorists—Ibrahim Athar, Sunny Ahmed Qazi, Zahoor Ibrahim, Shahid Akhter, and Sayed Shakir—who seized the IC-814 flight on 24 December 1999, during its journey from Kathmandu to Delhi.

The standoff lasted eight days, with 154 passengers and crew held hostage. It ended with the release of notorious terrorists Masood Azhar, Omar Sheikh, and Mushtaq Ahmad Zargar, who were escorted to Kandahar.