LAHORE: Justice Shams Mehmood Mirza of the Lahore High Court again issued notice on a petition challenging the ban on exhibition of recently-released Urdu film Maalik.
The judge had already sought replies from the federal and Punjab governments, film censor board and others. On Wednesday, counsel for federal and Punjab governments sought time for filing replies and judge ordered for submission of replies till May 19.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed, Advocate Munir Ahmad and Mehboob Alam had filed these petitions. Counsel for Mian Mehmood, Sheraz Zaka said that the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting had imposed ban on exhibition of this film through a notification on April 27. Earlier, the censor board had given approval for the exhibition of this film, he submitted.
He said that after 18th amendment, the government had no authority to impose ban on any film and the matter pertaining to motion pictures has been devolved to provinces. He stated that the film was on the topic of corruption issue which was hot in the prevailing circumstances after Panama Papers and it would not create any unrest among the masses.
He said that the film was against neither the sovereignty of the state nor the social values but even then the government had banned the exhibition of the film in cinemas across Pakistan. He submitted that the film was based on social norms and values in the society and against menace of corruption. He said that a movie or drama made for the social development couldn’t be banned.
He requested the court to set aside the notification banning the exhibition of the movie. Counsel for Munir, Muhammaz Azhar Siddique submitted that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was behaving very oddly since the revelations of the Panama Papers. In a couple of days, he (the prime minister) has addressed to the nation many times without a strong purpose or requirement.
Now, the prime minister has started a series of public processions and rallies all over Pakistan in order to detract the attention of the nation from the serious allegations of corruption, money laundering and tax evasion leveled against him and his family, he said. But in all processions, he (the prime minister) did not answer to any single question or allegation leveled against him and he was simply announcing the development projects in different constituencies only to decrease the wrath against him, he said.
In addition, the recent Urdu film Maalik has added the fuel to the fire as the subject matter and the theme of this film is corruption, nepotism and misuse of powers of ruling elite of Pakistan. He said that the impugned notification proves that the ministry had not only exceeded its powers while issuing the notification but has also tried to insult the real essence of 18th amendment which is only to cure the corrupt political elite of the government.
The movie was shown in the cinemas for at-least 15 days. He said that the people have fundamental rights to view the movie in view of the Article 19 and any action in violation of Article 19 is void in term of Article 8 and the impugned Notification is not in accordance with law as directed in Articles 4 and 5 of the Constitution of Islamic.
