This handout photograph released by India's Press Information Bureau shows Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaking during a via virtual meeting with leaders of central Asian countries, in New Delhi, India, Jan 27, 2022. (PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU VIA AP)

MUMBAI - India has blocked the airing of a BBC documentary which questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership during the 2002 Gujarat riots, saying that even sharing of any clips via social media is barred.

Directions to block the clips from being shared have been issued using emergency powers available to the government under the country's information technology rules, said Kanchan Gupta, an adviser to the government, on his Twitter handle on Saturday.

The government has issued orders to Twitter to block over 50 tweets linking to the video of the documentary and YouTube has been instructed to block any uploads of the video, Gupta said. Both YouTube and Twitter have complied with the directions, he added

While the BBC has not aired the documentary in India, the video was uploaded on some YouTube channels, Gupta said.

The government has issued orders to Twitter to block over 50 tweets linking to the video of the documentary and YouTube has been instructed to block any uploads of the video, Gupta said. Both YouTube and Twitter have complied with the directions, he added.

ALSO READ: India says BBC documentary on PM Modi is 'propaganda'

Modi was the chief minister of the western state of Gujarat when it was gripped by communal riots that left more than 1,000 people dead, by government count - most of them Muslims. The violence erupted after a train carrying Hindu pilgrims caught fire, killing 59.

Modi denied accusations that he failed to stop the rioting. A special investigation team appointed by the Supreme Court to investigate the role of Modi and others in the violence said in a 541-page report in 2012 it could find no evidence to prosecute the then chief minister.

Modi was later named the head of his party, the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, which he led to power in general elections in 2014 and then in 2019.

READ MORE: India biggest state holds polls in key test of Modi's popularity

Last week, a spokesperson for India's foreign ministry termed the BBC documentary a "propaganda piece" meant to push a "discredited narrative".