Sharjeel Imam Moves High Court To Postpone Release Of Film Based On Delhi Riots

Sharjeel Imam on Thursday (January 30) moved the Delhi High Court seeking postponement of the release of a film based on 2020 North-East Delhi riots. The film titled “2020 Delhi” is scheduled for release on February 2, three days ahead of Delhi Legislative Assembly elections. Justice Sachin Datta issued notice in the plea and listed it for hearing tomorrow.The respondents in the plea are Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Central Board of Film Certification, Delhi Police, Director of the film- Devendra Malviya, Visual Birds Institute and Studio (VIBES) Private Limited and Producers- Nandkishor Malviya, Ashu Malviya and Amit Malviya. The petition is filed through Advocates Ahmad Ibrahim, Talib Mustafa and Ayesha Zaidi. Sharjeel has sought a pre-screening of the movie by the Court. He has also sought postponement of the release the trial the trial in the UAPA case related to the riots is concluded. Furthermore, the plea seeks take down or removal of all of photos, posters, videos, teasers and trailers of the film till the trial is concluded. The plea claims that the creators of the film have “intentionally and deliberately” thwarted the legal processes, ignored the constitutional framework and purposefully portrayed a misrepresentative account of the alleged events that took place during the riots.“Such a heavily biased narrative, as showcased in the trailer of the film, has the potential to prejudice not just the bail application of the Petitioner that is pending before this Hon'ble Court but the sessions trial which is yet to commence before the Ld. Special Court,” it adds. The plea submits that the trailer of the film features Imam as the main character, which can adversely affect his right to reputation and right to life with dignity.“It is pertinent to mention that the poster and the promotional videos of the movie falsely claim that the sequence of events in the movie are based on true events. Moreover, the promotional materials also reveal and return a definitive finding that the Petitioner has an instrumental role to play. It is humbly submitted that not only does this create the impression that the said film depicts the true accounts of the events which transpired during the alleged Delhi Riots, it also presents a misrepresented picture of the role played by the Petitioner during such incident,” the plea states. Apart from Imam, a similar petition is filed by riots accused Tasleem Ahmed, Akil Ahmed and Sonu as well as riots victims Sahil Parvez and Mohd. Sayeed Salmani. Notice has also been issued in their petition. They have sought setting aside of the film certificate issued for the release as well as to restrain the release of the movie till criminal cases against them are finallu disposed of.Their petition has been filed through Advocates Mehmood Pracha and Jatin Bhatt.Title: SHARJEEL IMAM v. UNION OF INDIA AND ORS. and other connected matter

Sharjeel Imam Moves High Court To Postpone Release Of Film Based On Delhi Riots

Nupur Thapliyal

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