Appeal Moved Before Kerala High Court To Stall Release Of Movie Inspired By Venjaramoodu Mass Murder Case

Last week, the Single Judge had dismissed the writ petition filed by the father of the accused, who had stated that the movie would prejudicially affect the trial that is currently pending before the Sessions Court, Thiruvananthapuram.

The Single Judge had held that the petition was moved based on an assumption of the petitioner that the movie was based on the murder case since he has not seen it. It was also found that the Court cannot interfere with the release of a movie on a supposition that the same would affect trial.

“The judicially skilled mind is not swayed by depiction in a movie. A court of law appreciates the evidence adduced, on the basis of the well settled principles of law and arrives at conclusions on the materials placed before it. The depiction in a movie cannot be regarded as evidence. The contention that the movie will sway the mind of the court cannot be countenanced, as the path of judicial decision making is based on law and evidence, not on fiction,” the Single Judge had added in his verdict.

Challenging the same, the appellant/petitioner has stated that he relied upon concrete pre-release materials, including trailer and director's interview, which according to him, point towards many similarities to the pending case.

It is further contended that the Single Judge did not consider the issue of defamation and reputational injury, which was specifically pleaded:

“The learned Single Judge failed to appreciate that once the film is released and disseminated widely through theatres and digital platforms, the prejudice caused to the reputation of the accused and the fairness of the trial would become a fait accompli, incapable of being undone by any subsequent judicial intervention, and therefore the situation warranted a deeper and more cautious judicial scrutiny at the pre-release stage, which has not been undertaken.”

The appellant further points out that the movie would be capable of influencing witnesses, whereas the impugned judgment held that the judicially-trained mind would not be prejudiced by the same. He has also pleaded many other grounds to challenge the Single Bench's decision.

The appeal prays for setting aside the judgment and for a writ to restrain the release of the movie. The appellant also seeks a John Doe injunction to restrain all persons from releasing or publishing content based on the Venjaramoodu Mass Murder Case till the conclusion of trial, same as that prayed for in the writ petition.

As an interim prayer, the appellant has sought for restricting the makers of the movie, their agents and other persons from releasing any sort of promotional materials, trailers or teasers of the movie pending disposal of the plea.

A John Doe injunction is all also sought against media platforms, OTT platforms, social media intermediaries, digital content creators and all persons from making available any movie, documentary, web series, visual, audio or digital content which directly or indirectly portrays, depicts or is inspired by the Venjaramoodu Mass Murder Case, including defamatory content against the appellant and his family.

The appeal is moved by Advocates Sajju V. and Ajmal A.

Case No: WA 924/2026

Case Title: Abdal Rahim H. v. Union of India and Ors.