Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi
New Delhi, Jul 28: The Supreme Court on Tuesday said its earlier decision to permit the release of the animated film Mahaprabhu Jagannath only after the conclusion of the Rath Yatra was aimed at balancing concerns over public order with the fundamental right to freedom of expression.
A bench headed by Justice BV Nagarathna also agreed to hear on Wednesday an application filed by the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration challenging the film's release.
The matter was mentioned before the bench by Odisha Advocate General Pitamber Acharya after the application was not listed, despite an assurance by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant a day earlier that it would be heard on Tuesday.
Explaining its earlier order, the bench observed that the court had consciously deferred the film's release until after the Rath Yatra in view of public sensitivities.
"We had permitted the release of the movie after the conclusion of Rath Yatra as we had to balance everything. We are conscious about the sensitivities attached to law and order. So we permitted the release after the festival gets over," the bench said.
Appearing for the Odisha government, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the court that the temple administration had approached the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) on July 25 seeking revocation of the certification granted to the film.
Mehta argued that the CBFC could not decide on the request as the Supreme Court had already permitted the film's release.
Acharya submitted that the challenge to the film's content remains pending before the Orissa High Court and is scheduled for hearing on August 5. He clarified that the temple administration was only seeking a clarification that the Supreme Court's earlier order dealt solely with the timing of the release and not the merits of the challenge.
The bench, however, remarked that the application appeared to be expanding the scope of the original petition.
"This is only a cartoon. It will appeal more as fictional work. We balanced the rights of liberty of the producer and the sensitivity involved and permitted the movie's release after the Rath Yatra gets over," the court observed.
Accepting Mehta's request, the bench agreed to list the application for hearing on Wednesday.
In its application, the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration stated that protests against the film were continuing across Odisha, with demonstrations, public meetings and calls to stop its screening in cinema halls.
Senior advocate Devadatt Kamat, appearing for producer Ele Animations Private Limited, opposed the application, arguing that it effectively sought a review of the Supreme Court's earlier order. He questioned whether law and order concerns could be cited to block the screening of a film that had already received CBFC certification.
Mehta responded that the court had not viewed the film and said the temple administration had earlier attended a pre-release screening, after which it suggested certain changes that, according to the administration, were not incorporated before release.
The temple administration further contended that although the Rath Yatra had concluded, lakhs of devotees continued to visit Puri and other parts of Odisha. It urged the court to restrain the film's release until either the Orissa High Court or the CBFC decides the matter.
The Supreme Court's July 17 order had set aside an interim stay imposed by the Orissa High Court on the film's release. The High Court had stayed the release while hearing a petition alleging that the film's portrayal of Lord Jagannath was inconsistent with the Skanda Purana, Brahma Purana and long-established temple traditions.
The producers have maintained that Mahaprabhu Jagannath is a fictional animated film centred on a child devotee named Balram and noted that the story has already been broadcast as a television series for the past two years.