New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a petition that called for the release of upcoming historical drama Padmavati be stopped. The court said that since the film was yet to be cleared by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), agreeing to stall its release would amount to “prejudgment”. A lawyer ML Sharma had argued that the film defamed Queen Padmavati. He said the songs of the film had already been released without any approval.
Earlier on Monday, BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh banned the film Padmavati. Even Congress-ruled Punjab also supported the protest against the movie as Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said ‘distortions of history’ won’t be accepted.
Separately, West Bengal chief minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee also waded into the controversy, but she was against the protests, and called the whole situation a “super emergency” for the way it was being handled.
“The Padmavati controversy is not only unfortunate but also a calculated plan of a political party to destroy the freedom to express ourselves. We condemn this super emergency. All in the film industry must come together and protest in one voice,” said Banerjee.
