Udaipur Files, Supreme Court
"Let It Be Released": Supreme Court Refuses To Urgently List Plea By Udaipur Murder Accused Seeking Stay On 'Udaipur Files' Movie Release
|The petition claims that the upcoming film, promoted as a ‘true story’, will irreparably prejudice the ongoing criminal trial and vitiate the petitioner’s right to a fair trial under Article 21.
The Supreme Court today refused to urgently list a petition filed by one of the accused in the 2022 Udaipur tailor murder case, seeking a stay on the release of the film ‘Udaipur Files Kanhaiyalal Tailor Murder’, which is slated to be released across India on July 11, 2025. The petition contends that the film is based on a trial that is still pending before a Special NIA Court and that its portrayal of the events as a “true story” violates the presumption of innocence and constitutes a media trial in contempt of court.
The petition has been filed by Advocate on Record Pyoli and was mentioned today before a Bench of Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia and Justice Joymalya Bagchi. She urged the Court to urgently consider the matter in light of the imminent release of the film. She submitted, “My petition is regarding the stay of release of a movie which is releasing day after tomorrow. This is regarding a murder trial. I am one of the accused in the murder trial. The trial is still going on. It is at a very crucial stage of production of Witnesses.” Emphasising the risk to the petitioner’s right to a fair trial, she stated, “...they are portraying it in the trailer, on the posters, as a true story, my Lord. And they are portraying only the prosecution side.” She informed the Court that the trailer had been released only on July 4 and that the urgency warranted immediate consideration.
However, Justice Dhulia declined to intervene at this stage, stating, “You make a request before the court concerned or the opening court.” When the Advocate reiterated that the film was releasing on Friday, the Bench responded, “Let it be released.”
It is contended in the petition that the Petitioner’s right to a fair and impartial trial will be gravely compromised by the release of a film which depicts the accused as guilty even before the court has delivered its verdict. It states, “The trailer description unequivocally states that the film is based on a powerful true story, thereby creating an impression in the public mind that the events depicted in the film are factual and conclusively adjudicated.”
It is submitted in the petition that the matter is still at the stage of prosecution witness examination, and the release of a publicly disseminated cinematic narrative during the pendency of the trial will irreversibly damage the impartiality of proceedings and contaminate public opinion. It reads, “By portraying the events as a true story and depicting the accused in a negative frame, the film is likely to prejudice an ongoing criminal trial, amounting to contempt of court under Section 5B(1) of the Cinematograph Act, 1952.”
The petition also raises alarm over the communal impact of the film’s release, stating, “The narrative of the movie may create communal tensions, especially given the matter is fresh and emotionally charged… The content is provocative in nature and carries a real and imminent risk of reigniting communal tensions.”
It is alleged that the film’s producers previously marketed it under the title ‘Gyanvapi Files – A Tailor’s Murder Story’, before renaming it to Udaipur Files, which the petition claims is a deliberate attempt to “entice religious sentiments to earn profits.”
The plea further alleges that the release of the film constitutes a direct interference with the administration of justice, and invites action under Section 6 of the Cinematograph Act, which permits the government to suspend or revoke film certification where public order or judicial proceedings may be affected.
The petitioner has also made representations to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the Central Board of Film Certification, seeking suspension of certification, but states that no action has yet been taken.
In support of his claims, the petitioner relies on the Supreme Court’s observations in Anukul Chandra Pradhan v. Union of India (1996), where the Court held, “…presumption of innocence of an accused is a legal presumption and should not be destroyed at the very threshold through the process of media trial and that too when the investigation is pending. In that event, it [would] be opposed to the very basic rule of law and would impinge upon the protection granted to an accused under Article 21 of the Constitution.”
The petition prays for the following:
“a. Issue a writ of mandamus and/or any other appropriate writ or direction in the nature of mandamus directing the Respondent no.1 to stay the theatrical release of the movie titled as “UDAIPUR FILES KANHAIYALAL TAILOR MURDER”, scheduled to be released on 11.07.2025, till the adjudication of the criminal trial pending before the Special Court, Jaipur in the interest of justice; and
b. Issue a writ of mandamus and/or any other appropriate writ or direction in the nature of mandamus directing the Respondent no.1 to exercise its revisional power under Section 6 of the Cinematograph Act, 1952 for revocation/suspension of the certification granted to the movie titled as “UDAIPUR FILES KANHAIYALAL TAILOR MURDER”…”
Cause Title: Mohammed Javed v. Union of India & Ors.