The Bombay High Court refused to order the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to immediately issue a certificate for Kangana Ranaut’s film ‘Emergency’. Instead, the court asked the CBFC to decide on any objections or representations by September 18. The film is based on the life of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and was set to be released on September 6, but has been postponed due to concerns raised by Sikh organizations about the portrayal of Sikhs and the accuracy of historical facts. The court said it could not give any direction to the CBFC as the Madhya Pradesh High Court had already ordered the censor board to consider the representations made by the Jabalpur Sikh Sangat, who had objected to the film’s content and trailer. The court stated that it could not issue the certificate as requested by the filmmakers.
The court instructed the CBFC to consider the objections raised, but also noted that a significant amount of money is invested in making a film, and the matter cannot be left open-ended. The filmmakers stated that the CBFC had initially certified the film with certain modifications, which they had submitted. Later, the CBFC informed the filmmakers that the certification process was completed, but when they went to collect the certificate, they were not given it. The CBFC representative claimed that the August 29 email to the production house was automatically generated by the system.
The film’s producers provided certain sources for the movie, and the CBFC’s examining committee is verifying if those sources are genuine. However, the court observed that the CBFC, which had already issued the certificate, is now reviewing it due to concerns raised by the Sikh community. Dhond argued that ensuring public order is not the CBFC’s responsibility.
