The Kerala High Court on Friday stayed for two weeks a single judge’s interim order that had put the release of The Kerala Story 2-Goes Beyond on hold for 15 days.
According to a PTI report, a division bench comprising Justices Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and P V Balakrishnan passed the interim order on an appeal filed late Thursday night by the film’s producer, Vipul Amrutlal Shah, hours after the stay on the movie’s release was issued. The bench had reserved its verdict in the appeal on Thursday night. The detailed order is awaited.
In his appeal, Shah contended that the film does not harm or denigrate the state of Kerala or any religious community. “The film only portrays a social evil,” his counsel submitted before the court.
He further argued that any delay in release would cause severe financial losses, stating that the film is slated to be screened in 1,500 theatres across India and over 300 overseas on February 27. A stay, he said, would “financially finish” the producers.
The earlier interim order had been passed by a single judge on the ground that there was a prima facie “manifest non-application of mind” by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) in granting certification.
The judge had also observed that there was a prima facie possibility of communal disharmony or denigration of a community in the film and held that releasing it without scrutiny by higher authorities would be legally improper.
Additionally, the court noted that the teaser of the film appeared to have the potential to distort public perception and disturb communal harmony, warranting judicial intervention at this stage.
(More details awaited)
