An NGO based in Jalandhar, Punjab, moved the Supreme Court on Wednesday, seeking a stay on the release of film Udta Punjab, reported ANI. The Human Rights Awareness Association has challenged the Bombay High Court order, which directed the Central Board of Film Certification to clear the film with one cut, saying it projects the state “in bad light”.Advocate Subramanian Prasad, who appeared on behalf of the NGO, pleaded that the high court cannot decide on deletions to be made in a film. He also requested for an urgent hearing on Thursday, as the movie is set to hit screens on Friday, June 17. A vacation bench of justices AK Goel and L Nageswara Rao said it would hear the plea only after the petitioner completed the filing formalities, The Times of India reported.

Another petition against Udta Punjab is pending in the Punjab and Haryana High Court. It was filed by advocate Wattan Sharma, who also claimed that the film, which is based on the theme of substance abuse in Punjab, depicted the state and its youth in “bad light”. A court-appointed panel watched the film on Tuesday and will present a report on its content by Thursday.

Co-producers of Udta Punjab, Phantom Films and Balaji Motion Pictures, had approached the Bombay High Court after the CBFC suggested as many as 89 cuts in the movie and asked the makers to delete all references to Punjab. During the proceedings, the high court reprimanded the board and reminded it that its job was to certify films, not to censor them.