The Supreme Court on May 10 urgently listed the petition filed by The Kerala Story filmmakers against West Bengal Government’s ban on screening and Tamil Nadu Government’s “de facto” freeze on the movie for a hearing on Friday, May 12.
Chief Justice D. Y. Chandrachud initially told senior advocate Harish Salve that the appeal against the Kerala High Court’s refusal to stay the release of the movie on May 5 was coming up for hearing on May 15, and this case could be listed along with that.
However, Mr. Salve pleaded urgency, saying the makers were “losing money everyday”.
Mr. Salve added that West Bengal has banned the film, Tamil Nadu issued a high alert at the time of the release of the film and another State was also following suit.
Refusing to stay the release of the movie on May 5, the Kerala High Court had emphasised on “artistic freedom” and the need to strike a balance.
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The High Court had watched the trailer and found nothing offensive against a particular community. It had said the movie made it clear that it was only “inspired by true events” and the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) had already cleared it for public viewing.
On May 4, the Supreme Court had refused to intervene in multiple challenges against The Kerala Story, saying it had to be very cautious, even reluctant, while dealing with petitions seeking to ban the screening of a film.
Multiple petitioners have argued that the film demonised the entire Muslim community, particularly Muslim youth, with a “malicious propaganda” that 32,000 girls in Kerala were lured through ‘love jihad’ and trafficked to West Asia to join the IS.
