The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear a plea against the stay on the release of PM Narendra Modi, a biopic on the prime minister, on Monday, ANI reported. The producers moved the court after the Election Commission on Wednesday stayed the release of the film until the end of polling.
The Lok Sabha elections will be held till May 19, with results being declared on May 23. The film was slated to be released on April 11. The film has been directed by Omung Kumar and features Vivek Oberoi as Modi.
The poll body had ruled that displaying material that promotes a political figure would go against the core principle of the Model Code of Conduct of creating a level-playing field for elections. The Model Code of Conduct has been in place since March 10.
The Election Commission had also ordered the producers of Laxmi’s NTR and Udyama Simham not to screen the films until further notice. Lakshmi’s NTR is Ram Gopal Verma’s biopic on former Andhra Pradesh chief minister NT Rama Rao, and Udyama Simham is about Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao.
The Election Commission’s order comes soon after PM Narendra Modi, which traces Modi’s life from childhood till the 2014 General Elections, was given a “U” certificate by the censor board for unrestricted public viewing.
The Supreme Court had earlier refused to stay the film’s release in a hearing on Tuesday and had left it to the Election Commission to take a call on whether the film violates the poll code.
Several Opposition parties had earlier complained to judicial authorities and the poll body about the film, alleging that it was a propaganda vehicle for the ruling BJP.
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