A hearing was held today in the Bombay High Court regarding Kangana's controversial film Emergency. The petition was filed by Kangana and Zee Studios. He has objected that the CBFC (Central Board of Film Certification) had earlier certified the film, but banned it 4 days before its September 6 release.
Today Justice B.P. A bench hearing of Kolabawala and Firdosh Pooniwala held that freedom of expression cannot be curtailed merely on apprehension of disturbance. CBFC has to take a decision on certification somehow.
CBFC officials reprimanded by High Court In a Bombay High Court hearing, the court reprimanded the CBFC saying that the censor board cannot refuse to grant a certificate to a film merely because it is likely to cause law and order problems in the future. It was also said whether the people of India are so innocent that they will believe everything shown in the film.
The next hearing of this case will be on September 25 The bench has said in the hearing that you (CBFC) have to take a decision somehow. You should have the courage to say that the film cannot be released. At least we will appreciate your courage. We do not want the CBFC to be stuck in the middle. The bench ordered the Censor Board to reach a conclusion by September 25. The next hearing of this case will now be held on September 25.
The last hearing in the Bombay High Court was held on September 4. The court then sought a reply from the CBFC by September 19. Sikhs object to the film. He alleges that an attempt has been made to tarnish his image. Petitions in this regard have been filed in several states.
The trailer of the film 'Emergency' was released on August 14
What is the whole matter? Kangana Ranaut and the filmmakers have accused the CBFC of arbitrarily withholding the film's certification in the petition. CBFC issued the certificate through e-mail, however, refused to provide a copy of the certificate just 4 days before the release.
Regarding this, CBFC's lawyer Abhinav Chandrachud has said that the makers of 'Emergency' received the system generated mail, but later it was stopped due to objections.
The court reprimanded the CBFC During the hearing held on September 4, the High Court judge reprimanded the officials associated with the CBFC. He questioned how you can send a system generated e-mail. Did the officials not watch the film before sending the mail? Did the officials not use their brain while giving the certificate?
In the petition, the lawyer on behalf of Kangana Ranaut's production house said – We will not make any changes in the film and will release the film in the same manner as the CBFC has sealed it earlier.
Kangana Ranaut's social media post after the hearing.
The case was already in the MP High Court Objecting to the film 'Emergency' and its trailer, the Jabalpur Sikh Sangat filed an application in the Madhya Pradesh High Court seeking a ban on the film. He says that an attempt is being made to malign the image of the Sikh community through this film. On this, the Madhya Pradesh High Court ordered the CBFC to consider the objections before clearing the film.
The Bombay High Court refused to issue an immediate order The Bombay High Court had said in a hearing on September 4 that the Madhya Pradesh High Court had already given an order to the CBFC, so it could not issue any order in this regard now. The court told the producers – 'We are with you, I wish you had argued the same way before the Madhya Pradesh High Court, otherwise it would not have happened that the CBFC chairman would not have signed.'
Finally the court said that they are not rejecting the petition of the producers. If a week is late, the sky will not fall. The makers should have first presented these arguments before the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
Importantly, the film 'Emergency' has been in controversy ever since its trailer was released. In Punjab, there is a continuous protest about the film. Kangana is also receiving death threats after Khalistan supporter Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale was shown in the film's trailer.
Some time ago a person named Vicky Thomas released a video saying that if Jarnail Singh is misrepresented, Kangana will have to suffer the consequences.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
