Judges should not be influenced by watching the film and should not forget the evidence

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has refused to stay the release of the controversial film ‘Match Fixing – The Nation is at Stake’, which is said to be based on the 2008 Malegaon blast case. The High Court took this decision after the producers claimed that the film was completely fictional.

Mrs. Colabawala and Nyaya. Sundaresar bench rejected the petition of Lt. Colonel Prasad Purohit, accused in the case. The petition demanded a ban on the film and claimed that it would affect the case. Purohit’s lawyer said that saffron terror has been depicted in the film. The film is releasing on 15th November, hence its image is getting tarnished. The producer of the film told the court that it is a product of imagination based on a book already available in the market. A disclaimer will also be placed at the beginning of the film stating that the film has no resemblance to any person living or dead and is based on fiction.

Hearing the arguments briefly, the court suggested minor amendments to the disclaimer. We do not think that the concern raised by the applicant is justified. Therefore, the film based on fiction has no bearing on the case, the court said.

The petition was dismissed holding that the petitioner’s concerns were misplaced. The court also asked whether you think that such a film will influence the judges in India and forget the evidence. If it’s not connected to the book, why is it on the movie? The court said.

When the saffron terror was shown, the court, in its proposal to ban the film till the elections are over, asked what does the film have to do with the elections? We cannot hold any filmmaker hostage because of elections.

Meanwhile, another man named Nadeem Khan withdrew his application on the grounds that the film had hurt the sentiments of Muslims.

In the trailer of the film itself, Muslims have been wrongly and baselessly portrayed as spreading violence and hatred in the country. Petitioner Nadeem Khan has said that he watched the trailer of the film on YouTube on October 23 and was shocked. Such reference is not only derogatory and hurtful but also creates misunderstanding and intolerance towards the petitioner’s religion, Islam. This trailer is extremely objectionable and insulting while targeting the Muslim community. The petition states that religious sentiments have been hurt and communal harmony has been hurt.