Rights groups criticise Bengal Urdu Academy for postponing event to be attended by Javed Akhtar

Civil rights groups have criticised the West Bengal Urdu Academy for postponing a four-day literary event after Islamic groups objected to poet-lyricist Javed Akhtar’s participation, reported The Hindu on Tuesday.

The event, “Hindi Filmon Mein Urdu ka Kirdar”, was due to be held in Kolkata from Sunday till Wednesday, with Akhtar slated to attend a programme on Monday.

However, on Saturday, Nuzhat Zainab, the secretary of the Urdu Academy, announced that the event had been postponed “due to unavoidable circumstances”.