"Bombay High Court Clears 'Emergency' Film for Release: Makers Resolve Issues"

The Bombay High Court was informed on Friday that the makers of the controversial film Emergency have resolved the issues regarding cuts and edits needed for its public release. A bench of Justices Burgess Colabawalla and Firdosh Pooniwalla learned that after discussions between the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), Zee Studios, and Manikarnika Films Productions (owned by Kangana Ranaut), the matter has been settled. Senior Advocate Sharan Jagtiani, representing Zee Studios, stated that the filmmakers would need at least two weeks to comply with the changes suggested by the CBFC's revising committee. Once the changes are made, the CBFC will verify them and issue the necessary certificate for the film's release. With this, Zee Studios requested the court to dismiss the plea, and the judges agreed. Zee Studios had filed the plea seeking a court order for the CBFC to issue a certificate for the film's release. The co-producer claimed the CBFC had initially granted an electronic certificate (e-certificate) and notified Ranaut by email. However, the board withheld the hard copy of the certificate, citing objections from the Sikh community. The CBFC denied ever issuing an e-certificate, explaining that the emails referred to by Ranaut and Zee were auto-generated. The court had previously directed the CBFC to address any objections and make a decision by September 18. During earlier hearings, the court expressed frustration when the CBFC referred the matter to its revising committee. Zee Studios alleged that the CBFC, acting on behalf of the central government, was intentionally delaying the film’s release, as the BJP, in power, didn’t want the film to influence upcoming elections in Haryana, due to its perceived "anti-Sikh" content. www.legalmeet.in