Kerala High Court to hear pleas against ‘The Kerala Story 2’ movie at 3 pm

The Kerala High Court will hear petitions challenging the certification of The Kerala Story 2 - Goes Beyond, scheduled for release on February 27. Petitioners argue that the film’s teaser and trailer misrepresent Kerala’s communal harmony and could incite disharmony.

Kochi:  The Kerala High Court on Wednesday said it will hear arguments on the pleas against ‘The Kerala Story 2 – Goes Beyond‘ in the post lunch session.

Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas said he will hear the matters in detail at 3pm.

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The court had on Tuesday orally observed that the teaser and trailers of the movie depicts a state like Kerala where everyone lives in communal harmony in a wrong light.

The court had also observed that using the state’s name and claiming the film is based on true facts can lead to communal tensions in the state.

The three separate pleas have sought to quash the certificate for public viewing granted to ‘The Kerala Story 2 – Goes Beyond’ which is scheduled to be released on February 27.

One of the three pleas has been moved by Sreedev Namboodiri of Kannavam in Kannur district, who has arrayed the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), and producer Vipul Amrutlal Shah as respondents in his writ petition filed last week.

Besides quashing of its certification, Namboodiri’s petition also seeks certain modifications, including reconsideration of its title.

The petitioner has claimed that the film was certified for public viewing by the CBFC allegedly without due compliance with the statutory mandate under the Cinematograph Act, 1952.

According to the petition, the grievance arises from the teaser and trailer of the film, which portray narratives involving women from multiple states, yet brand the content as ‘The Kerala Story’, thereby associating alleged incidents of terrorism, forced conversion and demographic conspiracy exclusively to the state of Kerala.

“Such a portrayal has the potential to stigmatise an entire regional population, disturb public order, and incite communal and regional disharmony”, the petition has said.