The Supreme Court recently concluded proceedings on petitions concerning the contentious 2023 film ‘The Kerala Story’, though it left the broader legal question surrounding challenges to CBFC film certification unresolved.
Supreme Court rules certification pleas infructuous
According to PTI, a bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant disposed of numerous cases on Friday that were either filed during the COVID-19 period or had lost relevance over time. Among these, the bench, which also included Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana—addressed two petitions calling for the cancellation of CBFC certification granted to “The Kerala Story,” ruling that the pleas had become infructuous.
Supreme Court sees withdrawal of West Bengal ban plea
Meanwhile, a third petition, filed by the film’s producers Sunshine Pictures Pvt Ltd and Vipul Amritlal Shah challenging the West Bengal government’s earlier decision to ban the film, was withdrawn.
Supreme Court hears arguments on continued relevance of pleas
Back in May 2023, the top court had stayed the state government’s ban. In the other two matters, advocate Nizam Pasha, representing petitioners Qurban Ali and B R Aravindakshan, argued that his clients’ concerns remained relevant even though the film had since been released. He also highlighted that the Kerala High Court had already disposed of a writ petition on the film, noting at the time that such a plea could not be sustained against the CBFC’s decision to certify the movie.He argued that although producers had a statutory route to challenge CBFC certification, individuals aggrieved by a film’s content lacked any such statutory recourse and had to seek relief through a writ petition in court instead. The bench, however, pointed out that the film had already been released.
Supreme Court says legal question will ‘await another movie’
Justice Bagchi remarked that the legal question could remain unresolved for now. “The litigation has to await another movie… another movie that is controversial, we will go into that question,” Justice Bagchi said. Pasha countered that the petitioners had specifically pushed for the cancellation of the film’s certificate, adding that it was still accessible on OTT platforms. He further noted that the petitioners had initially moved the Supreme Court against an interim high court order, but the high court later disposed of the petition after observing that the matter was already before the Supreme Court.
Supreme Court responds to call for hate speech guidelines
Pasha also pressed the court to establish guidelines for films accused of promoting hate speech, stating, “Guidelines have to be laid down for films that promote hate speech.” To this, the CJI responded, “Alright, file a comprehensive writ petition seeking general guidelines.” The bench went on to record that the legal question would stay open, granting the parties freedom to pursue appropriate proceedings as per law. “The Kerala Story,” helmed by Sudipto Sen and produced by Vipul Amritlal Shah, sparked significant political and social controversy upon its 2023 release.
Supreme Court case ties back to film’s controversial claim
The film had originally alleged that around 32,000 women from Kerala were deceived into converting to Islam and coerced into joining ISIS, a claim that sparked widespread backlash.
