The Supreme Court on Friday sought the State of West Bengal’s reply to a petition challenging the State’s decision to ban the screening of the ‘The Kerala Story’ film.
The Court also sought a response from the State of Tamil Nadu, which, according to the filmmakers, has enforced de-facto ban on the film.
A bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha stated that the film had already been released in the rest of the country, and West Bengal was no exception.
“The film has been released in various parts of the country. West Bengal is no exception. What if it’s already been released elsewhere? It is being run in various parts of West Bengal with similar demographics. And this has nothing to do with its cinematic merit, which could be good or awful,” the bench explained.
The Court also stated that it would not pass any order without first hearing from all parties, and hence requested responses from West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. The matter will now be heard on May 17th, Wednesday.
The Supreme Court was hearing a petition filed by the film’s makers contesting the West Bengal government’s decision to prohibit screenings of the film in the state, as well as Tamil Nadu’s de-facto ban.
During today’s hearing, Senior Advocate Harish Salve, who represented the filmmakers, stated that the petitioners were seeking quashing of the West Bengal ruling.
He also requested directives for protection in Tamil Nadu.
The filmmakers are represented by advocates Ameet Naik and Madhu Gadodia.
Senior Advocate AM Singhvi, appearing for the State of West Bengal, stated that in similar cases, the court had directed petitioners to move similar petitions before the High Court. As a result, the same should be done in this case.
“We have received a huge number of intelligence reports,” he added.
The Court, on the other hand, stated that the film had been shown in other states, including places with similar demographic profiles as West Bengal, and so West Bengal could not claim to be any different.
The Kerala Story is a film about a group of Kerala-based women who join ISIS. On May 5, the picture was released.
