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High Court has been asked to hear the petition challenging the movie's certification on merits and dispose it at the earliest
A vacation bench of the Supreme Court today has ordered a stay on the release of film 'Hamare Baarah'. Court has said the release shall be stayed till the petition pending before Bombay High Court is decided.
The petition filed by Azhar Basha Tamboli challenged the Bombay High Court's recent order allowing release of the film.
The moviemaker's counsel argued today that all objectionable scenes were removed from the teasers. A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta rejected this claim saying, "We saw the teaser today morning and all scenes are there".
Few days back, High Court gave a green light for the release after the filmmakers agreed to delete two contentious dialogues. This resolution came after a three-member review committee, appointed by the court to watch the film and report back, failed to provide a timely report, which the court deemed unacceptable.
Notably, the High Court had previously on June 5, 2024, ruled to restrain the release of the film “Hamare Baarah” on any public platform until June 14, 2024 while hearing a writ petition filed against the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to revoke the film’s certification.
The plea alleged that “the film is in complete contravention of the provisions of the Cinematograph Act, 1952 (“Cinematograph Act”) read with the rules and guidelines…that the film is wrongly certified and the release would violate Article 19(2) and Article 25 of the Constitution.”
The plea also contended that the film incorrectly portrays the lives of married Muslim women as lacking independent rights due to a misinterpretation of "Aayat 223," a verse in the Quran. It argued that the trailer includes dialogues and visuals derogatory to the Islamic faith and married Muslim women in India. Furthermore, it was claimed that, in line with section 5B of the Cinematograph Act and sections 153A, 292, 293, 295A, and 505 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, a public exhibition of the film would hurt the sentiments of Muslims and potentially incite societal hatred, as detailed in the petition.
It is pertinent to note that despite the clearance from the Bombay High Court, 'Hamare Baarah' faces a ban in Karnataka. The state government has prohibited its release or broadcast for two weeks or until further notice, citing concerns that the film could incite communal tension.
Cause Title: Azhar Basha Tamboli vs. Ravi S. Gupta & Ors
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