October 27, 2017
In a major setback for the opponents of actor Vijay starrer
Tamil movie "Mersal", the Madras High Court on Friday dismissed a petition that
sought revocation of the film's censor certificate.
A division bench
dismissed the petition filed by lawyer A. Aswathaman, stating that the movie is
work of fiction.
The court said it is for the viewers to decide and there
is nothing in the movie to warrant a ban.
The court also wondered how a
movie's dialogue would affect a common man.
The petitioner had contended
that the movie had wrong information about Goods and Services Tax (GST) and also
mocked at the Digital India initiative of the Central Government.
"Mersal" is in the midst of a controversy after the Tamil Nadu unit of the
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) demanded the removal of certain dialogues which
take a dig at the GST and Digital India.
Directed by Atlee, "Mersal"
stars Vijay in the roles of a village head, a doctor and a magician. It is doing
brisk business at the box office.
The issue got national attention with
Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi coming in support of the movie and taking a
dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the demand for removal of dialogues
critical of GST in the movie and asked him not to "demon-etise Tamil pride" by
such interference.