Plea Seeking Stay On Release Of ‘The Kerala Story’ In SC: Kapil Sibal Appears On Behalf Of Petitioners; CJI Lists Matter For 15 May

On Tuesday (9 May), the Supreme Court agreed to consider a challenge against the Kerala High Court's decision to deny a stay on the release of the movie "The Kerala Story" and to not remove the trailer and other clips.

The plea was presented by Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal before a Bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud.

The CJI agreed to list the case for hearing on 15 May, Monday.

The Kerala High Court had earlier refused to stay the release of the film on 5 May, stating that it did not contain anything offensive towards the Muslim community, but rather was about the terrorist organisation ISIS.

The High Court had received six petitions challenging the movie's release, with the petitioners claiming that it would promote hatred against Muslims and that it was not based on facts.

The Supreme Court had earlier declined to interfere with the release of the film or to pass any orders for its urgent listing before the Kerala High Court.

Several petitions were filed before various courts across the country against the release of the Kerala Story.

The Madras High Court had on 4 May, rejected a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking a ban on the movie on the ground that the Kerala High Court was already hearing a similar challenge, and that the petitioners have approached the courts at the very last hour.