The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued notice to the Uttar Pradesh government on a writ petition filed by Prakash Jha, director-producer of the Hindi film Aarakshan, challenging the order banning the film in the State.
A Bench of Justices Mukundakam Sharma and Anil R. Dave issued notice after hearing senior counsel Harish Salve, appearing for the producer and posted the matter for further hearing on Friday.
The Bench recorded the submissions made on behalf of counsel for the States of Punjab and Andhra Pradesh that subsequent to the filing of the writ petition the ban orders in the two States had been revoked.
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Mr. Salve pleaded for stay on the order suspending the release of the film in U.P. contending that the State had no power to pass such an order. He pointed out that the Censor Board had set up a special committee to see the film and had certified it after getting a report from it.
Justice Sharma, however, said that it would not be possible to stay the order without hearing the government. The Bench asked the State to file its response by Thursday and rejoinder, if any, by the petitioner by Friday.
The petitioner said the film starring Amitabh Bachchan, Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone was given U/A certificate by the Censor Board for release all over India. Denying the charge that the film was anti-Dalit, the petitioner said he had always been compassionate towards the cause of the backward Dalit caste and the same was amply demonstrated through his films.
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He said: “The film Aarakshan uses the issue of reservation only as a landscape or backdrop on which the story and journey of the protagonist, who is the principal of an institution, is based.”
He said any restraint on exhibition of the film certified for public exhibition in accordance with Cinematograph Act would violate his fundamental right of speech and expression guaranteed under Article 19 (1) (a) of the Constitution. He sought quashing of the ban order and to allow screening in Uttar Pradesh.