Udaipur Files: Supreme Court Allows Filmmakers, Kanhaiyalal's Son to Seek Police Protection Amid Threats

The Supreme Court on Wednesday granted liberty to the producer, director, and the son of the victim portrayed in the film Udaipur Files to approach the concerned Superintendent of Police or Police Commissioner for protection, citing alleged death threats.
The Court directed that if a credible threat perception is found, appropriate steps must be taken by the authorities to ensure their safety.
The Bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi today deferred further hearing on a plea challenging the Delhi High Court’s interim order staying the release of the film Udaipur Files, which was scheduled to hit theatres shortly before the injunction.
The Court said it would await the outcome of proceedings before the Central Government, which is presently considering a revision petition under Section 6 of the Cinematograph Act.
The Bench was also hearing a petition filed by Mohammed Javed, an accused in the brutal murder of Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur, who has sought a stay on the film’s release, contending that it would adversely affect the ongoing trial before the Special NIA Court.
It recorded that Javed’s plea raised issues touching core principles of criminal jurisprudence, as the film could cause "irreversible prejudice."
In its order, the Court noted that the Delhi High Court had not expressed any opinion on the film’s content but had rightly relegated the petitioner to the statutory remedy under Section 6 of the Cinematograph Act, which empowers the Central Government to suspend or un-certify a film even after the CBFC has issued a certificate.
"To enable the writ petitioner to pursue that remedy, the High Court had granted an interim stay on the film’s release and directed that the revision be decided within a week," the Court noted.
The Court was informed that the competent authority has constituted a committee to consider the Section 6 revision petition filed by Maulana Arshad Madani, and that the hearing before the committee is scheduled for today at 2:30 PM.
“In these circumstances, we find it appropriate to defer further hearing to await the outcome of the proceedings before the Central Government,” the Court stated.
Further, the Bench permitted Mohammed Javed to appear through counsel before the Central Government in the revision proceedings and directed that the committee afford him a hearing as well. “We expect that the revision petition will be decided without any delay,” the Court added.
The Court also took note of submissions by Senior Advocate Gaurav Bhatia, who stated that the film’s producer, director, and the victim’s son had received threats to their lives over the release of the film.
Granting liberty to approach the concerned Superintendent or Commissioner of Police, the Court directed that authorities assess the threat perception and, if merited, ensure necessary protection.
The matter will now be heard again on Monday, July 21.
Previously
Interestingly, on July 15, the Supreme Court had agreed to hear on July 16, a petition filed by an accused Mohammad Javed, in the Kanhaiya Lal murder case seeking stay on release of movie “The Udaipur Files: Kanhaiyalal Tailor Murder”, slated for release on 11 July 2025. Last week, the bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Justice Joymalya Bagchi had refused to urgently hear this petition.
On July 14, the Supreme Court had agreed to list a plea challenging the Delhi High Court’s interim order staying the release of the film Udaipur Files, which was scheduled to hit theatres shortly before the injunction was passed. Senior Advocate Gaurav Bhatia had mentioned the matter before a Bench led by Justice Surya Kant, seeking urgent listing in view of the film’s halted release.
Notably, on July 10, Delhi High Court had halted the release of Udaipur Files until the Centre decides on a revision plea filed under Section 6 of the Cinematograph Act. The petitioners include Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind and journalist Prashant Tandon. Court allowed them to move the government and ordered that the stay would remain in effect until their application is resolved, directing the Centre to decide the matter within a week.
On July 9, 2025, the High Court had directed the producer of Udaipur Files, Amit Jani, to arrange a private screening of the movie and its trailer for all counsel of both parties, after the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) had informed the court that it had mandated 40 to 50 cuts before granting certification.
The High Court had also clarified that the manner in which the case against release had been reported in media was not what truly happened in the hearing before the Supreme Court, with portals reporting that the court had asked for it to be released.
The petitions before the High Court had alleged that the film’s content flagrantly violates Section 5B of the Cinematograph Act and the 1991 Guidelines for Certification of Films for Public Exhibition, both of which prohibit the public exhibition of content likely to incite communal disharmony. Highlighting the two-minute fifty-three-second trailer of the movie, released on June 26, the petitioners contended that it contained highly inflammatory and provocative content.
Stay on the release of the film Udaipur Files had received strong criticism from Kanhaiya Lal’s son, Yash Sahu. The film, which depicts killing of Udaipur’s tailor Kanhaiya Lal, who was stabbed 26 times by two muslim men in June 2022, after Lal showed his support for BJP leader Nupur Sharma’s remarkes on Prophet Mohammed, was stayed by the Delhi High Court on Thursday, just a day ahead of its scheduled release. Reacting to the decision, in an interview with ANI, Yash Sahu questioned the judiciary’s swift intervention in staying the release of Udaipur Files. In a detailed statement, he highlighted that his father’s murder case has seen little progress despite the passage of nearly three years, despite the presence of direct video evidence and multiple eyewitnesses.
Case Title: Mohammad Javed v. UOI and Jani Firefox Media v. Maulana Arshad Madani