NEW DELHI: In a day of dramatic developments, the Censor Board chief Leela Samson quit citing bureaucratic inference, coercion and corruption triggering a series of resignations of board members. On last count, at least eight of the 23 board members had either resigned or will do so in the next 24 hours. A few more may follow.The government fielded the junior I&B minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore to deny any interference in the Board’s functioning. He said if Samson or any other member had any evidence of interference, in the shape of letter or text messages, it should be brought to the government’s notice. Samson said there was “total interference on every film, big and small”. Sources said overruling CBFC objection and hastily clearing MSG: Messenger of God , a controversial film by Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, by the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT) was the tipping point for her decision to resign. The Board felt that the film promotes obscurantism.The CBFC members who have submitted their resignation, or were in the process of doing so, include academic Ira Bhasker, AICC secretary (Hindi dept) Pankaj Sharma, TV journo Rajeev Masand, film actor Arundhati Nag, filmmaker Shahji Karun, theatre personality M K Raina, TV producer Nikhil Alva and Lora K Prabhu.The term of all the members had expired in May 2014, and they were being given extensions by months from time to time. On top of this the Board was allegedly being starved of funds, and had not met since early 2014. That apart, their efforts to bring our structural changes in the composition and qualification of examining committee members were also thwarted by the ministry. This, many members said, had made their role irrelevant.Bhasker says they were frustrated by the bureaucracy at every step. “We are going to resign in support of Leela Samson. But what’s happening now is a culmination of a long process. There was no money for meetings. The Board didn’t meet since early 2014. We wanted to bring about positive changes. To that end we had also written to the UPA-government in the summer of 2013. As members, we are supposed to put across our views in meetings. Otherwise what’s the point in being a member?,” she said.Samson said that the problems related to the CBFC started during UPA regime. She says that political workers were chosen as members of panel and that she expected the new government to pick a new board. “I had offered to resign six months ago but was asked to continue. Problem started during the UPA govt itself,” she said.It is learnt that Raina and film writer Anjum Rajabali had already tendered their resignations some time ago. “But it seems it wasn’t accepted. Because suddenly a few days back, I received a card extending my tenure,” Raina told TOI.Bhasker, who also teaches cinema in JNU, said: “Our term ended in May 2014. But we kept getting extension by one or two months. There was no extension after September 2014. Then strangely I received a letter on Thursday night with my new card as a board member extending my tenure till March 2015.”Countering Samson, Rathore said that “while the chairperson talks about coercion, we as the government would like to see that SMS, or a letter where she or any other member has been coerced. Then we would take appropriate action.”Referring to the allegation of corruption, the minister hit back saying the CBFC chairperson was herself part of the selection process that selected a particular officer who was later arrested for allegedly accepting a bribe. “He has been removed, about six-seven months ago and a new officer has been put in charge. The government is absolutely hands off from all decisions of the Censor Board. They are an independent body and they need to behave like one,” he said.In Mumbai, board member Nandini Sardesai, who headed the review panel of MSG, said the film shows him projecting himself as having miraculous powers to cure deadly diseases and eliminate enemies. On Friday a board member in Mumbai said, “MSG was twice rejected by the Board, once by an examining committee, another time by a seven-member review panel. Those who saw the film felt it can cause disharmony in society.”Sardesai told TOI, “As head of the review committee that declined to certify MSG I feel that the credibility of our panel has been undermined by the tribunal's decision to clear it. All seven of us who reviewed MSG had denied a certificate based on the provisions of the Cinematograph Act. The Act clearly says a film cannot promote superstition and obscurantism.”She said, “I am surprised that the tribunal granted a clearance with utmost speed to this film, within 24 hours almost. We referred it to them Wednesday and it was cleared the very next day. Other films even by prominent directors have had to wait one month to get the tribunal to see it.''TV producer Nikhil Alva said, “We have resigned en masse in solidarity with the chairperson. I think the Board serves no purpose except to take flak on certification. It acts as a buffer between the I&B ministry and the world when there is something wrong and I think given their attitude its best that the ministry take on the work of certification itself."Alva said in a letter to the ministry he and his colleagues had said that since the genuine effort made by the members had been ignored, they felt the need to move on. Alva said the members had warned the ministry that corruption within the Board would continue if the current processes were not overhauled.Film critic Rajeev Masand said that being part of the Board had been a “frustrating experience" and concerns raised on issues of corruption and interference had fallen on “deaf ears." He added the Board was not allowed to function, or meet and several letters sent to the ministry had not been addressed.Sources said that 8-9 members wanted to improve things especially at the examining committee level where the film is reviewed. “It is not a clean place. The corruption starts at the lowest level where examining committee members appointed by the ministry without consultation with the Board hold forth. This is the place where power and pelf are misused but the blame falls on the Board that is mainly for policy making," a member said.Absence of meeting and lack of activity is a common grouse among CBFC board members. Both Pankaj Sharma, who is also AICC secretary (Hindi department), and Pankaj Vohra reaffirm that view.“There has been no board meeting since February 2014,” said Sharma, adding that ‘’I wanted to resign today but it seems it will only happen tomorrow.” Vohra said, “As far as I recall, there was no board meeting after February or March last year. Our term ended in June 2014 and I have not received intimation of any extension.”When questioned on the recent fracas, thespian Amal Allana said she was unaware of the recent developments related to the CBFC but strongly felt the need for freedom of expression in the arts. “It can’t be that ideas change when governments do. There must be some standards that we hold as a secular democratic society.”(With inputs from Mumbai)