Calcutta HC asks Bengal govt if there was administrative ban on screening of 'The Bengal Files

Kolkata, Sep 23 (IANS) A division bench of the Calcutta High Court, on Tuesday, sought clarification from the West Bengal government on whether there were any specific administrative directives banning the screening of Vivek Agnihotri-directed film 'The Bengal Files' at cinema halls and multiplexes in Kolkata.

The division bench of Justice Sujay Paul and Justice Smita Das De directed the state government to present its clarification to the court by September 26.

The matter will come up for hearing again on September 26.

The division bench sought this clarification from the West Bengal government on Tuesday, acting on a public interest litigation (PIL) earlier this month seeking the court's intervention in ensuring a smooth and peaceful screening of 'The Bengal Files' at cinema halls and multiplexes in West Bengal.

At present, there is an unofficial ban on the screening of 'The Bengal Files' in West Bengal, where the cinema halls and multiplex owners have denied providing slots for the film, reportedly following pressures from a particular political pressure group.

On Tuesday, Justice Paul questioned the state government counsel whether it was true that 'The Bengal Files' was not screened at a single cinema hall in Kolkata.

Earlier this month, Calcutta High Court's single-judge bench of Justice Amrita Sinha dismissed a petition filed against the screening of 'The Bengal Files' because the petitioner concerned could not back up his claims behind his petition with substantiated information and supporting documents.

The petition was filed by Santanu Mukherjee, the grandson of freedom fighter Gopal Mukherjee alias Gopal Patha, who was portrayed in the film.

Justice Sinha also said that such petitions did not come under the jurisdiction of her court and the petitioner should approach the appropriate forum in the matter.

'The Bengal Files', is the third part of the 'Files' trilogy, the first being 'The Tashkent Files' in 2019 and the second being the much-controversial 'The Kashmir Files' in 2022.

Previously, the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government had been accused of issuing gag orders against other feature films like 'The Kerala Story' on allegedly "flimsy" grounds.

--IANS

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