MP High Court Issues Notice to Centre, CBFC Over Kangana Ranaut-Starrer Emergency

 Bhopa: Madhya Pradesh high court on Monday issued notice to the Union government and the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) seeking a clarification as to if the upcoming Kangana Ranaut-starrer Bollywood movie ‘Emergency’ has been certified yet or not.

The division bench of the high court comprising acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva and Justice Vinod Saraf have however taken note of the Centre’s recent submission before the Punjab and Haryana High Court that the movie has not yet been certified.

“In view of the order passed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the board is looking at it. There could be a possibility that there is some scene which requires editing, deletion... Probably the film will not release on the sixth....”, Justice Sachdeva observed.

The court’s directive came in response to public interest litigations (PILs) filed by the Jabalpur Sikh Sangat and Guru Sikh Sabha Indore.

The petitioners’ counsel Narinder Pal Singh Rupra argued that there was violation of Cinematograph Act in the case since the trailer of the movie showed Amritdhari Sikhs killing people and delivering a dialogue that said ,‘You want votes, we want Khalistan’’’.

The court however said that it had not watched the trailer and sometimes it does not portray the real picture.

The petitioners’ counsel said that the trailer was very popular and it portrayed Sikhs in poor light.

“Contrary...during the first and second lockdown, the Sikhs in Delhi and the world over were at the forefront of helping these people”, Justice Sachdeva observed.

The court has listed the matter for urgent hearing on Tuesday.