The Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society had filed a plea in the Supreme Court to ban Neeraj Pandey’s Aiyaary for allegedly portraying the society and its members in ‘bad light.’ However, the apex court yesterday dismissed the plea and criticized it for becoming “super censor board.”
Starring Manoj Bajpayee and Sidharth Malhotra, Aiyaary is based on the infamous Adarsh scam of 2011.
The bench, comprising Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, said that the film cannot be banned as it has been cleared by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) and that, too, after consultation with the defence ministry. While passing the judgement, the bench said, “everyone shall become super censor board if such a plea is allowed.”
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The judgement further said that as freedom of expression is the most fundamental right granted by the Constitution of India, filmmakers cannot be deprived of artistic freedom. The trial in the Adarsh scam is still under way. The bench said that the suspicion of the complainant that the trial will be affected by the film was “baseless.”
This wasn't the only snub for the complainant. The apex court also refused their demand of adding a disclaimer in the beginning saying that the film is not based on any scam.
The Adarsh Housing Society was supposed to be built for the families of the heroes of the Kargil War of 1999 and personnel of the defence ministry. But several politicians, bureaucrats and military officers allegedly misused power to acquire flats at below market prices.
The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) said in its report, “The episode of Adarsh Co-operative Housing Society reveals how a group of select officials, placed in key posts, could subvert rules and regulations in order to grab prime government land – a public property – for personal benefit.”