Censor boArd revAmP mAy hAPPen soon: shyAm benegAl
Information and Broadcast Ministry is in close consultation with the stakeholders to bring in changes in the archaic Cinematograph Act 1952.
Ihave been told (by the Information & Broadcasting Ministry) to wait for a couple of days. I am hopeful that the government will push the much required revamping of the CBFC,” noted filmmaker Shyam Benegal told The Sunday Guardian, ending the uncertainty surrounding the recommendations of the special committee under his aegis, which had suggested that the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) should limit its functioning to issuing certificates to movies and should not impose censoring. Benegal told this newspaper that he has “already submitted a report that recommends certain changes in the certification body”. Sources in I&B Ministry confirmed to this newspaper that the ministry is in close consultation with the stakeholders to bring in changes in the “archaic” Cinematograph Act 1952.
The Shyam Benegal Committee had submitted its report to the I&B Ministry in April 2016. I&B Minister Venkaiah Naidu had said earlier this year that the ministry would take action on the recommendations made by the committee in 2016 for the overhaul of CBFC, but no announcement followed, leading many in the film industry to speculate on the fate of the committee’s recommendations.
But Benegal clarified that there may be some movement soon. “I met the officials in the ministry and asked them about the status of the recommendations for the overhaul of CBFC. It’s been really long and there has been no clarification whatsoever on whether the ministry is accepting all the recommendations or part of it. They have said they will get back to me in couple of days,” Benegal told this reporter immediately after his meeting with the officials in I&B Ministry on Thursday.
Earlier, the I&B Ministry, in its official statement had stated that the government was amenable to “most of the recommendations” made by the Shyam Benegal Committee and the “amendments would be in tune with the technical and other realities of film production and modern times”.
An official in the I&B ministry told this newspaper, “The government is very keen to bring in the necessary changes in the Cinematography Act, 1952 and revamp the board. But these processes take time.”
The draft Bill, which has taken into consideration the recommendations made by Shyam Benegal, has already been initiated and will enable the Centre to take over the CBFC under “special circumstances” in order to safeguard “public interest”.
While it remains unclear what these special circumstances would be, the new Bill gives power to the Centre to not only extend the dura- tion of its control over the Board, but also to restructure the certification body.
The new Bill is expected to take away the CBFC’s power to demand cuts in a film. A new “adult with caution” category will also be introduced. The report suggested that the existing categories should be sub-divided to make the content accessible to appropriate audience. For instance, the report suggests that the current UA category should be sub-divided into UA 12+ and UA 15+.
Benegal also said that “There have been increasing cases where the Central Board of Film Certification has demanded unreasonable modifications and cuts.”
In what could be seen as seconding of accusations against the Pahlaj Nihalaniled board that it took “controversial decisions”, Benegal cited a documentary on Amartya Sen, and Madhur Bhandarkar’s movie Indu Sarkar as “recent examples (of controversial decisions)”.
Responding to these developments, Anurag Srivastava, CEO at CBFC, told The Sunday Guardian, “The Board acts as per the laws. As and when new regulations are announced by the government, the Board will start implementing them.”
The CBFC’s power to censor was approved by the Supreme Court in 1970 in the K.A. Abbas versus Union of India case, where the Board had asked for certain cuts in the award-winning filmmaker’s movie Tale of Four Cities. Retailers and traders are increasingly coming up with “smart ways” to keep customers, unwilling to pay higher “integrated taxes” under the new Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime, happy. An investigation by The Sunday Guardian revealed that retailers are applying “innovative ways” to ensure that their products “remain at lower rates under the GST regime”. Providing separate bills to customers on purchases is one of the “innovative ways”, but there are others.
When Sangeeta Kochar, an undergraduate student from Delhi University, asked a shopkeeper in Kamala Nagar for ways to lower the GST rate on her purchase of a pair of shoes worth Rs 999, the shopkeeper asked her to take two separate bills for the purchase, thereby making it possible for her to effectively pay only 5 % service tax. Under the GST regime, footwear below Rs 500 is being taxed at 5%, while above that price at 18%. “the shopkeeper gave me two separate bills of Rs 499 each for a pair of shoes. It helped me save a few bucks,” Kochar told The Sunday Guardian.
Taking separate bills also proved beneficial for Suman Rastogi, a 29-year-old IT professional. “A store owner said that if I agree to accept separate bills for the purchase of shoes, the store will charge a lower GST rate at only 5%. I agreed to his offer and saved some money on the purchase of shoes,” Rastogi said.
Under the GST regime, apparels under Rs 1,000 are taxed at 5%, while those above Rs 1,000 are charged at 12%. So some sellers are giving multiple bills for selling different parts of a garment. A shopkeeper at the Janakpuri district centre shopping complex said: “Customers unwilling to pay higher GST ask for ways to keep expenses low; so we give them separate bills on their purchase.”
Devesh Sachdev, CEO, Fusion Microfinance, and an expert on issues related to GST, pointed out other “loopholes” that are being exploited. Under the GST regime, branded rice is taxed at 5%, while unbranded rice is exempt from tax, and according to Sachdev, this fact is being taken advantage of. “The scope of avoiding tax or paying lower rates became possible because of the government’s decision to keep multiple rates under GST. While a few products are exempt from tax, others are charged at 0%, 5%, 12%, 18%, 28%, plus cess. Also, the tax is divided between the state and the Central governments,” Sachdeva told The Sunday Guardian.
Rajeev Gupta of Gupta and Sons, a wholesale dealer of rice in the Sadar Bazar area, said: “After the implementation of GST, many rice mills have stopped supplying rice under registered brand names; they are instead supplying rice under other names which are not registered under the Trademarks Act 1999,”
Sachdeva added: “There is no mechanism to determine and differentiate between air-conditioned and non airconditioned restaurants which are, thus, left to decide for themselves whether or not to charge GST in any of two categories.”
Suman Kumar, a senior official the Central Board of Excise and Customs, said: “The Goods and Services Tax Network is keeping tabs on loopholes and it will take proper measures to fill these gaps.”