‘Padmavati’ row: High court rejects plea to file FIR against makers of ‘Padmavati’

JAIPUR: On a petition filed against controversial Bollywood period drama ‘Padmavati’, a lower court in Jaipur directed the petitioner to record his statements before the court on November 27.
Four versions of the Padmavati legend
The petitioner, Bhagwati Prasad Sharma, had filed a complaint against 11 persons, including film director Sanjay Leela Bhansali, lead actress Deepika Padukone and the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), among others, over causing anarchy and chaos in the country and hurting the sentiments of the Rajput community by stirring a controversy over the film.
The additional chief metropolitan magistrate court (No-16) on Thursday, however, rejected the demand of the petitioner to register an FIR against the filmmakers and conduct a probe into the conspiracy.
The petitioner alleged that it was part of a conspiracy by the filmmaker to publicize his film by creating a controversy. This has also hurt the sentiments of the Rajput community who hold ‘Padmavati’ in very high esteem.
The petitioner had sought direction to file an FIR and a probe into the conspiracy. The court, however, rejected the petitioner’s plea. He alleged that the promos of the film were released before the film received certification by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) and accused the CBFC also of dereliction of duty.
He asked how the filmmakers managed to carry out a private screening of the film without receiving CBFC’s certification. The petitioner said he would file a revision petition in the district court against the lower court order.