British-Muslim actors Jameela Jamil, Riz Ahmed withdraw from event where Modi will receive award

•  Hollywood actors Riz Ahmed and Jameela Jamil pulled out of Bill Gates event where Modi will receive the ‘Global Goalkeeper Award’.
• The celebrities’ decision was initially tweeted by journalist Azad Essa on Monday.
• Jameela took to Twitter and said that she would not be commenting on her decision.

British-Muslim actors Jameela Jamil and Riz Ahmed have refused to attend the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation ceremony where Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been also scheduled to receive an award for his cleanliness drive in India.

The Gates Foundation has confirmed that the two actors have pulled out of the fourth annual ‘GoalKeepers Award ceremony’ where Modi is scheduled to receive the ‘Global Goalkeeper Award’. “Jameela Jamil and Riz Ahmed are no longer participating in Goalkeepers,” the foundation told HuffPost India.

There are also speculations that New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern may also pulled out of the event.

The two actors have not publicly commented on their withdrawal from the ceremony.

Jameela took to Twitter and said that she would not be commenting on her decision, as she is threatened with rape and death threats if she talks about world politics and war. “As a survivor, I cannot and will not endure that treatment, so I will not be commenting on any of this.”

As I’ve said before, when I publicly discuss world politics, especially when war is involved, I become the recipient of a multitude of death and rape threats. As a survivor, I cannot and will not endure that treatment, so I will not be commenting on any of this. https://t.co/CaTNK0WnEs

— Jameela Jamil 🌈 (@jameelajamil) 16 September 2019

Though no reason has been provided about the actors’ withdrawal but it has been speculated that this move comes in wake of ongoing situation in Indian Occupied Kashmir, where an indefinite curfew has cut communication and basic necessities of more than eight million people.