Bombay HC to hear Zee's plea for Ranaut's 'Emergency' certification
Zee Entertainment Enterprises has approached the Bombay High Court seeking a directive for the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to issue a certificate for its upcoming film Emergency. The court has agreed to hear the plea on Wednesday. The film, directed by Kangana Ranaut, is facing backlash from Sikh organizations, including the Shiromani Akali Dal, over alleged misrepresentation of the community and historical inaccuracies.
ZEE's petition claims CBFC 'illegally and arbitrarily' withheld certification
ZEE's petition before the high court alleges that the CBFC has "illegally and arbitrarily" withheld the film's certification. According to a lawyer, the plea states that the Censor board has prepared the certificate but is not issuing it. The plea was presented before a division bench of Justices B P Colabawalla and Firdosh Pooniwalla for an urgent hearing.
Ranaut accuses CBFC of stalling certification to delay release
Ranaut, who has directed and co-produced Emergency, in addition to playing the lead role of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, accused the CBFC on Monday of delaying the film's certification. The movie was originally scheduled for release on September 6, but has been postponed amid the controversy. Sources revealed that the CBFC has requested additional cuts in the film. Earlier, the Shiromani Akali Dal had sent a legal notice to the Board seeking to halt the film's release.
'Film may incite communal tensions, spread misinformation'
The SAD's legal notice, sent on August 27, warned that the film could "incite communal tensions" and "spread misinformation." It read, "Such depictions are not only misleading but also deeply offensive and damaging to the social fabric of Punjab and the entire nation." The notice also accused Ranaut of choosing the subject of Emergency to target the Sikh community.
'Film portrays Sikh community in unjust, negative light'
The legal notice further claimed that the movie portrays the Sikh community in an "unjust and negative light." Earlier, Ranaut had stated her readiness to defend the film in court. "There is pressure on us to not show the assassination of Gandhi, Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and the Punjab riots. I don't know what we will show then," she had said in a social media post.
