NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court directed the Centre, the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) and all state governments on Tuesday to ensure that the film “Nanak Shah Fakir” is released across the country on April 13, Baisakhi.
Coming out strongly in defence of the right to free speech and expression, especially of artists and actors, the court said law and order must be maintained wherever the film is released “and no one shall be allowed to create any disturbance. It is the duty of the state to facilitate the enjoyment of a right which has the sanction of law”. The film will, however, not be released in Punjab as the producers have themselves decided against it.
In their petition before the Supreme Court, the filmmakers had submitted that “looking at the sensitivity of the issue and the public sentiment involved,” they had decided “not to release the film in the state of Punjab for the time being.” The Punjab government had initially decided to ban the film given the widespread protests against it, but then took a step back.
Chief minister Amarinder Singh said, “Any decision to ban the movie had become unnecessary in view of the filmmakers’ decision against releasing it in Punjab.” Amarinder asked Sikh groups not to become violent but then added, “While authors and filmmakers had the creative freedom of expression, such freedom could not be allowed to violate the religious sensitivities of any community.”
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Hearing a plea by the filmmakers, a bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud frowned at vigilante groups attempting to assume CBFC’s role in the public screening of films. It also slammed SGPC for creating hurdles in the film’s release despite it having CBFC’s clearances. “We do not see how anybody, group, association or individual can create any kind of disturbance in exhibition of the film,” the judges said.
SGPC had initially appreciated the film and even agreed to promote it. However, after certain Sikh groups protested against its release, the Sikh religious body withdrew its support and asked the government to ban it. On Monday, Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of Sikhs, “banned” the film and asked Sikhs to stay away from it. Several Sikh organisations are objecting to the portrayal of Guru Nanak in the film, saying any on-screen depiction of a Sikh guru or his family members was against the tenets of Sikh religion.