SC CLEARS NANAK SHAH FAKIR, BUT PUNJAB NOT TO SCREEN THE FILM

The Punjab government on Tuesday decided not to screen controversial film Nanak Shah Fakir in the state, hours after the Supreme Court cleared the decks for panIndia release of the movie on April 13.

Gurkirat Kirpal, the special principal secretary to chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh, confirmed the development on Tuesday afternoon.

The film ran into controversy with the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and Akal Takht jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh opposing the release of the film in which the lead role is of the founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak. “We have imposed a ban on the controversial movie... The film cannot be released (on April 13),” Akal Takht Jathedar Gurbachan Singh had told the media in Amritsar. The Akal Takht is the highest temporal seat of Sikh religion.

The Supreme Court roundly criticised the apex Sikh body for putting restrictions on release of the movie, with the bench of chief justice Dipak Misra and justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud observing that once a statutory body like the Central Board of Film Certification has cleared movie, no individual has the right to impede its release.

“Once the certificate is granted (by CBFC), unless it is nullified by a superior authority, the producer has every right to exhibit the film in movie halls. Any obstruction has the potential to bring anarchy and cripple the right of freedom of expression”, said the court.

The bench asked all states to maintain law and order and ensure smooth screening.

The petitioner Harinder S Sikka, a retired Naval officer and the producer of the film, had approached the apex court seeking protection of the fundamental right of speech and expression. The CBFC had cleared the movie on March 28. Sikka said SGPC had communicated that he should not release the movie, on March 30.

CHANDIGARH/NEW DELHI: