A day after the Bombay High Court ordered the re-upload of a deleted video of Dia Mirza, veteran actor Soni Razdan said in an Instagram post that bursting a single firecracker on Diwali is ‘anti-national’ for him.
Soni Razdan’s post underlines the health hazards to young children caused by bursting firecrackers on Diwali.
“Any parent of a young child will tell you how much their children suffer because of air pollution. How many days of school they miss due to illness. So if you tell me that, under such circumstances, it is perfectly fine to burst even a firecracker this Diwali, all I can say is that I find it anti-life, anti-health and yes… anti-health.”
“Health is a choice we make for ourselves and our children. Let’s make the right choice,” the Shaikh actor added.
Soni Razdan, who shared the post late Tuesday night, has disabled the comments section of the post.
Soni Razdan’s message comes days after Dia Mirza’s awareness video was removed by a Mumbai civic body. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has deleted the pollution-free Diwali video after objection from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Following the move, Dia Mirza shared her reaction in a statement, stressing the need for a safe environment.
“Diwali celebrates the victory of light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance, and hope over despair. The video was recorded in the interest of public awareness, with the intention of promoting a healthier and more conscious celebration. Air pollution is a matter of public health, and every effort to reduce it is a step towards a better environment for all,” Mirza said.
Apart from Dia Mirza, the video features several celebrities including Madhuri Dixit and cricketer Ajinkya Rahane. While other celebrities’ messages were retained, Dia Mirza’s message was removed.
Underscoring the secular nature of the country, the Bombay High Court rebuked the Mumbai civic body, saying, “We have not seen any politician or anyone who made the comments yesterday, who posted awareness-raising videos. We are a secular country. We are really saddened by this. This issue concerns the environment and every person, irrespective of religion and air-breather.”
The court further said that the civic body commissioner was absolutely right in selecting celebrities to spread awareness and it was unfortunate that other unnecessary issues were raised.
“There should be a secular spirit, and the Constitution expects citizens to promote it. If the clip was removed, it would be ideal to re-upload the same,” the court said.
Also Read | ‘It’s a secular country’: Court slams Mumbai civic body on Dia Mirza Row