Udta Punjab verdict a slap on Modi's 'intolerant' regime: Kejriwal

Abhishek Chaubey lauded the courage and hard work by the lawyers and producers

Following the Bombay High Court's ruling on Monday clearing the controversial flick 'Udta Punjab', Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that the landmark judgement was a slap on the 'intolerant' regime of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"Udta punjab judgement is a tight slap on Modi regime's intolerance," Kejriwal tweeted.

Meanwhile, a visibly relieved Abhishek Chaubey, who is the director of this film, lauded the courage and hard work by the lawyers and producers and said that his team would now fight for the release on its scheduled date on June 17.

"Today I salute the courage of my producers and the hard work that my lawyers have made and this film has been passed. We will fight for its release on the 17th. I am terribly pleased with the verdict and I am relieved," Chaubey told the media here.

Producer Anurag Kashyap's lawyer Ameet Naik told the media that if the decision is challenged and taken to the Supreme Court then the 'Udta Punjab' team will defend the film tooth and nail yet again.

Asserting that there is no mention of the word "censor" in the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), the Bombay High Court earlier on Monday pulled up the board for demanding 89 cuts in 'Udta Punjab' to grant a certificate for its release, while directing it to use its power according to the constitutional provisions and directions issued by the Supreme Court.

"We don't find anything in the film that shows Punjab in bad light or affects the sovereignty or integrity of India as claimed by the CBFC. Creative freedom should not be unnecessarily curbed. Nobody can dictate to a filmmaker about the content of his film," the court observed.