BJP leader and advocate Nazia Ilahi Khan filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Calcutta High Court on Monday, seeking a ban on the screening of Laal Singh Chaddha in West Bengal, claiming that the film, starring Aamir Khan and Kareena Kapoor could cause a breach of peace.
The case is expected to be heard by a division bench of Chief Justice Prakash Srivastava and Justice Rajarshi Bharadwaj on Tuesday or later this week.
To back up her claims, the petitioner cited several recent instances in which the state faced a critical situation. According to the petition, the state was enraged by an alleged provocative statement made by Nupur Sharma, former spokesperson for the Bharatiya Janata Party, against Prophet Mohammad. However, the plea adds that the situation was brought under control after the court intervened.
The plea also refers to a remark made by the Chief Minister of West Bengal in which she allegedly used the term Jihad against the state’s main opposition party. The plea also claims that the situation was brought under control due to the intervention of the court.
The petitioner claimed that there had been debates and controversies on social media over the film’s screening in recent days. She also mentioned that a social media campaign urging people to boycott the film has begun.
In support of these claims, the plea claims that all of these incidents demonstrate that when any act becomes communal in nature, whether through words, signs, or visible representations, the situation in the state of West Bengal becomes quite vulnerable.
Although there have been reports of tensions surrounding the film’s screening in some states such as Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, no such incidents have been reported from West Bengal as of yet.
The remake of Forrest Gump, Laal Singh Chaddha, was released on August 11. However, the film has underperformed at the box office due to social media boycotts.
