Nanak Shah Fakir: SC to hear plea against film's release on 16 April, after it hits the theatres

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on 12 April agreed to hear a plea by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) for blocking the release of film Nanak Shah Fakir. The film based on first Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak, is set for release on 13 April. The court will take up the matter on 16 April. [caption id=“attachment_4426185” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Poster for Nanak Shah Fakir/Image from Twitter.[/caption] The matter was once mentioned again when court assembled in the post-lunch sitting. Senior counsel PS Patwalia told the court that hearing the SGPC plea on 16 April would be of no consequence as the film was going to be released on 13 April. However, the court refused to advance the date of hearing to 13 April. A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra, Justice AM Khanwilkar and Justice DY Chandrachud told petitioner Satinder Singh Gulati that the Central Board of Film Certification had cleared the film for release and it can’t be objected to without taking recourse to lawful means. It also said that outsiders cannot control freedom of expression of an artiste. Gulati told the court that by a 2003 resolution, the SGPC has said that no one can act as any of the 10 Sikh Gurus, their family members and the Panj Pyaras (five beloveds of the Guru). He mentioned the plea for an urgent hearing. The apex court was also told that till date — in the last 550 years — no one has portrayed the role of the 10 Sikh Gurus. Gulati urged the court to hear the matter on 13 April, but Chief Justice Misra said, “We will take it up on Monday.” The Supreme Court had directed the states on 10 April to ensure that there was no opposition to the release of Nanak Shah Fakir, saying “wherever the film is released, the law and order is maintained and no one shall be allowed to create any kind of disturbance”.