Just a few days after the Kalabhavan theatre got a facelift, a court here has ordered its attachment in a land acquisition case. The Second Additional Sub Court has ordered the attachment of Kalabhavan and 18 acres of land for paying the dues amounting to Rs 73.72 lakh to one Mohammad Ibrahim, a resident of Manacaud here.
Judge Shajahan ordered the attachment in a case against the state of Kerala and Kerala State Film Development Corporation.
Ibrahim’s property was acquired for setting up Chitranjali Studio years ago. Even after compensation was awarded, the state did not deposit the amount and hence the property was attached.
Advocates S Chandrasekharan Nair, Arshad Mohammed, and Ali Nafiyudeen A appeared for the petitioner. The renovation of Kalabhavan theatre at Vazhuthacaud was done ahead of the International Film Festival of Kerala 2012 at the initiative of Cinema Minister K B Ganesh Kumar. As part of the facelift, the theatre got the latest sound and projection system with state-of-the-art 2K projector. The authorities also wish to popularise Kalabhavan as a centre for commercial film releases.