Friday, July 15 2005 20:24 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Pointing a finger at the winners of the National Film Award this year, Congress MP Rajeev Shukla has accused the government of adopting "haphazard criteria" in selecting the jury who in turn chose winners "based on personal choice or even vested interests".

"I write to you with a matter of grave concern over the ambiguous procedure followed to select National Film Award winners," Shukla said yesterday in a letter to Information and Broadcasting Minister S Jaipal Reddy.

In the letter he alleged that "following from what seems like haphazard criteria for the selection of the jury, including its Chairman, the selection of award winners becomes even indiscriminate and the jury appears to pick and choose winners based on personal choices or even vested interests of the jury members."This was perhaps why the National Film Awards were often mired in controversy, he said citing cases in the past when jury members had resigned "accusing the body of pre- determining the results and of not following the laid procedures."

Calling for a "relook" and introduction of "suitable changes" in the whole procedure for selection of the Awards, he suggested that eminent people with "no personal biases" be selected as judges.

"It should not be mandatory that the jury be headed by any person from the film industry, for these very persons may have a vested interest in prospective award winner", he wrote.

The 52nd edition of National Film Awards, adjudging Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan as best actor and 'Page 3' as best film were announced on Wednesday.