By Express News Service
NEW DELHI: A day after the Supreme Court voiced its support for the freedom of speech and expression for filmmakers, a plea was filed before it seeking removal of the alleged objectionable scenes from Padmavati and registration of an FIR against the makers of the film.
A Bench of Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud agreed to hear the plea, but declined the request for an urgent hearing.
The petitioner, advocate M L Sharma, also sought a direction for removal of all scenes of alleged “character assassination” of Queen Padmavati from the movie before its release, which is slated for December 1.
The fire of protest against the Sanjay Leela Bhansali directed film continued to rage across Rajasthan and other parts of the country on Friday. The Shri Rajput Karni Sena threatened to intensify its protest if the film was not banned.
In Rajasthan, the protesters blocked the entry to the Chittorgarh Fort, which houses Padmini’s Palace. However, Chittorgarh SP Prashan Kumar Khamsera said the fort, a world heritage site, was not officially closed. “We have been informed by the protesters that entry to the fort will be blocked for tourists. We have made ample security arrangements to deal with the situation,” he said.
In March, the fort had been vandalised by a group of men who broke the mirrors installed at the Padmini Palace.
Since the release of the film’s promos last month, protests against it have spread across India. The Karni Sena had on Thursday threatened to chop off the nose of actor Deepika Padukone, who is playing the title role, and announced nationwide protests on December 1.
