Delhi HC to hear plea on national anthem on October 17

The Delhi High Court will hear on October 17 a plea for directions to the central and Delhi government to make playing of the national anthem mandatory at all cinema halls/theatres before movie shows.

A division bench of Chief Justice G. Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal will hear the public interest litigation on October 17 since it did not assemble on Thursday.

The plea moved by law graduate Harsh Nagar asked the court to issue guidelines or orders with appropriate clarification as to where and on what occasions the national anthem can be sung or played.

The petition said Maharashtra, Goa and some southern states have the practice of playing the national anthem in cinema halls.

The plea said that a few decades ago it was mandatory to play the national anthem at the end of the screening of a movie.

However, it added, in a rush to leave theatres, spectators did not stand still and thus it was considered disrespect to the national anthem. This patriotic ritual faded with time and was completely stopped after a while, the plea said.

--IANS

gt/tsb/bg