Ajaz Khan, the host, and Rajkumar Pandey, the producer of the reality show ‘House Arrest’ on the ‘ULLU’ streaming app have been booked after a FIR was filed against them as per a complaint by a Bajrang Dal activist, Gautam Ravriya.
An official from Amboli police station stated, “Based on a complaint lodged by Gautam Ravriya, an activist of Bajrang Dal, the police registered a case against actor Ajaz Khan, producer Rajkumar Pandey of the ‘House Arrest’ web show and other persons from Ullu app.”
The FIR has been registered under sections related to obscene acts in public places and others under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Information Technology Act and the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act.
In a clip that went viral on social media, former ‘Bigg Boss’ contestant Ajaz Khan is seen pressuring contestants, both men and women, to act out intimate situations. The host is also seen asking the participants vulgar questions, much to their visible discomfort.
After the clip went viral, it was shared widely and criticised not only by netizens, but also by political leaders.
The case was registered on the same day when the show was taken off the app. The National Commission of Women also took note of the clip and summoned Mr Khan and the CEO of the Ullu app, Vibhu Agarwal.
The commission said in a post on X, “NCW takes suo motu cognisance of obscene content on Ullu App’s show House Arrest. Viral clips show women being coerced into intimate acts on camera. NCW slams the platform for promoting vulgarity and violating consent. CEO and host summoned on May 9.”
On Thursday, Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi also raised an objection and took to X, saying, “I have raised this in the standing committee that apps such as this, namely, Ullu App and Alt Balaji have managed to escape the ban by I&B ministry on apps for obscene content. I am still awaiting their reply.”
In another post, she wrote, “On March 14, 2024, the I&B Ministry had blocked 18 OTT platforms, which were found to be streaming obscene and pornographic content. The apps blocked by the government were primarily platforms distributing explicit material. The following 18 apps were banned… Surprisingly 2 of the biggest apps were kept out- Ullu and Alt Balaji, will I&B tell the country why they were left out from this ban.”
Earlier, Maharashtra BJP MLC Chitra Wagh also made a demand for the show to be banned immediately, alleging that the content of the show is obscene.
“Ajaz Khan, who calls himself an actor, has created a show called ‘House Arrest’, which is nothing but the epitome of obscenity. Clips from this show, streamed on the Ullu app, are now circulating freely on social media, and they are extremely vulgar,” she said.