SC upholds EC stay on PM Modi biopic till May 19
The EC said there are several scenes depicting a major opposition party as corrupt and showing them in poor light.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday upheld an order passed by the Election Commission staying the release of the biopic on Prime Minister Narendra Modi till the completion of the Lok Sabha polls on May 19.
A three-judge bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justices Deepak Gupta in a brief order said, “We are not inclined to interfere with the Commission’s order” and dismissed the petition filed by the producers of the film challenging the EC’s decision.
The biopic on Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a “hagiography”, starring actor Vivek Oberoi, which treats the subject with undue reverence, and its public screening during poll campaign will “tilt the electoral balance”, the Commission said in its report submitted to the apex court after watching the film.
The report said that the biopic “produces a political environment where an individual acquired cult status” and its public screening during the period when model code of conduct is in operation would favour a particular political party. The EC said “there are several scenes depicting a major opposition party as corrupt and showing them in poor light. Their leaders have been depicted in such a manner that their identification is clear and obvious to the viewers.”