ANIL PRADHAN Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By these proceedings which have been initiated invoking the PIL jurisdiction of the Court, the petitioner seeks a ban on the display of the motion picture 'Bajrangi Bhai Jaan' which is slated for release on 17 July 2015. The petitioner does not dispute the factual position that the motion picture has been certified by the Central Board of Film Certification. The petitioner addressed an Advocate's notice on 24 June 2015 after which the petition has been filed.

(2.) The parts of the film which are claimed to be objectionable have been set out in paragraphs 11 and 16 of the writ petition on which reliance has been placed during the course of the hearing. For convenience of reference, we extract the averments from paragraphs 11 and 16 hereinbelow:

(3.) The petitioner has lifted those portions of the motion picture which he considers to be objectionable. There is no reference in the writ petition to the theme of the film, the story on which it is based and the relevance of the context to the portrayal of the underlying message. We emphasise this aspect because the Court has to be conscious of the fact that the grant of any relief of the nature sought would impinge upon the fundamental right to the freedom of speech and expression that is conferred upon every citizen under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution. Artistic freedom cannot be curbed by allowing an over sensitive individual to lift a passage, dialogue or clip out of context. Every part of an artistic portrayal must be read in the context of the whole. Otherwise freedom to speak & express will be reduced to husk. That freedom comprehends not merely the freedom of the director, producer, artist and script writer but equally the freedom of the audience to see, watch, observe and assess.