The Supreme Court Today (July 21) extended the stay on the release of the film Udaipur Files until Thursday after the Central Government ordered six changes to the movie. The Court also allowed all parties to present their views before the Centre for final decision.
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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India extended the stay on the release of the controversial movie Udaipur Files until Thursday.
This decision came after the Central Government informed the Court that it has passed an official order suggesting six important changes to the film.
Earlier, the Supreme Court had postponed hearing the appeal filed by the producers of the movie. They were challenging an earlier order passed by the Delhi High Court, which had stayed the release of Udaipur Files until the Central Government examined the matter of its certification.
At that time, the Court had also permitted the main accused in the murder of Kanhaiya Lal—who had filed a writ petition against the movie’s release—to personally appear before the Centre to raise objections.
A bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi heard the matter and stated that the case will now be taken up again on Thursday. They also said that the ban on the movie will stay in place until then.
During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the Court,
“State has passed an order.”
Responding to that, Senior Advocate Menaka Guruswamy, who appeared for the accused in the Kanhaiya Lal murder case, said,
“We are contesting the order.”
Tushar Mehta then added-
“Any step more than what the State has done will be infringing Article 19. I have gone through the order. This is my personal opinion.”
Senior Advocate Gaurav Bhatia, who represented the film’s producers, informed the Court that all six changes suggested by the government have already been made in the movie. However, the Court made it clear that these changes must be made unless the producers choose to legally challenge the government’s order.
Gaurav Bhatia also brought the Court’s attention to several other petitions pending before various High Courts concerning the same film. To this, Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, who is representing one of the petitioners before the High Court, clarified that no new order had been passed by the High Court as the matter was already covered under the Delhi High Court’s earlier stay order.
On July 16, 2025, the Supreme Court had delayed the hearing of the film producers’ plea challenging the Delhi High Court’s interim stay on the movie’s release. This was done because a certification review meeting was scheduled with the Central Government on the same day.
The Court said that all parties should be allowed to present their opinions to the Centre before any final decision is made.
The bench had remarked-
“We can wait for a day or two since the government is taking it up… raise all contentions there.”
Earlier, the producers of Udaipur Files had urgently approached the Supreme Court. They argued that the movie should be allowed to release since it already had Censor Board approval. However, on July 10, 2025, the Delhi High Court had ordered a stay on the release of the film.
The Court had mentioned that the movie could potentially “promote disharmony” in society, and thus, a ban was necessary until a full review was completed by the Central Government.
CASE TITLE:
MOHAMMED JAVED vs UNION OF INDIA AND ORS.
W.P.(C) No. 647/2025 and
JANI FIREFOX MEDIA PVT. LTD vs MAULANA ARSHAD MADANI AND ORS
SLP(C) No. 18316/2025
LAST HEARING IN APEX COURT
The Supreme Court on July 16 refused to immediately remove the stay (ban) on the movie Udaipur Files, which is based on the murder of tailor Kanhaiya Lal Teli in Udaipur.
The Delhi High Court had earlier ordered this stay and asked the Central government to review the film under its legal powers.
A Bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymala Bagchi said that the Central government is already reviewing the movie, and so the Court will wait for its decision.
“We will keep the matter pending. We can have benefit of view of Union of India before the HC. Suppose union says nothing wrong then we will see that. If they make some cuts then also we can peruse the same. If centre was not taking up the matter, then different. We are told committee has been formed and union is looking into it… we can wait for a day or two,”
-said the Supreme Court.
The Court asked the committee looking into objections against the film to act fast and make a decision without delay.
“We expect that committee will decide the revision plea immediately without any loss of time. Post the matter for further consideration on July 21,”
-the Court said.
The Supreme Court noted that the High Court had not made any judgment on the actual content of the movie. It simply asked the petitioner to approach the Central government, which has the power to temporarily stop any movie’s release.
The Court also pointed out that the Central government’s review committee was already scheduled to examine the film on the same day.
“In such situation, we deem it appropriate to defer the hearing and await the outcome of proceedings pending before the Central government,”
-the Court added.
Also, the Court allowed one of the accused in the Kanhaiya Lal murder case to present their side before the committee.
The filmmakers had come to the Supreme Court after the Delhi High Court stopped the release of the film on July 10. The High Court had also asked the Centre to use its revisional powers under Section 6 of the Cinematograph Act to re-examine the film.
The movie was supposed to release on July 11, but the High Court’s stay order came after three petitions were filed — one by Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind President Maulana Arshad Madani. His petition said that the film was trying to vilify the Muslim community.
Earlier, the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) had told the High Court that some controversial parts of the movie were already removed.
The Court had asked the film producers to arrange a special screening for the lawyers involved in the case — Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal (for Madani) and Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Chetan Sharma (for CBFC).
After watching the movie, Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal strongly criticized it.
“This is not right for the country. This is not art. This is cinematic vandalism,”
-Sibal told the High Court.
Sibal added more during the hearing:
“When HC asked us, I personally saw the movie. I was shaken in every sense of the word. If any judge were to see it, it is a complete thematic […] of hate against the community. I am normally on the other side. This is a rare occasion. It is something that generates violence. It’s vilification of a community. Not one positive aspect about the community shown…homosexuality, judicial matters, treatment of women…a democratic nation certifying such movie…unimaginable…I don’t think in any nation, such agenda based movie should be allowed.”
On the other hand, Senior Advocate Gaurav Bhatia, who represented the film’s producers, said they had full CBFC approval and the release was scheduled in just a few hours.
“My movie was to be released after 12 hours. The movie was with 800 distributors. Now it is about piracy issues. If they decide by tomorrow to at least exhibit the movie. This is a reasonable request,”
-said Bhatia.
He also argued that the producers’ fundamental rights were being violated. But the Supreme Court said it cannot interfere now, since the case is already before the High Court.
“We see these fundamental rights issue everyday. If it is released then both petitions are infructuous… plea before centre and this plea by accused goes. If statute gives a right and that right is availed…HC has only relegated to the remedy in the statute,”
-said the Bench.
However, the Court stressed that the matter should be resolved soon.
“Yes it must be decided quickly. But it is unfair that hearing will be at 2:30 pm by the authorities and we tell them to evaluate allegations and counter allegations and deliver judgment by tomorrow. That will be unreasonable. HC has not passed order on merits…it is only on the statutory scheme,”
-the Court noted.
- Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal appeared on behalf of Maulana Arshad Madani
- Senior Advocate Meneka Guruswamy represented one of the accused in the Udaipur murder case.
CASE TITLE:
MOHAMMED JAVED vs UNION OF INDIA AND ORS.
W.P.(C) No. 647/2025 and
JANI FIREFOX MEDIA PVT. LTD vs MAULANA ARSHAD MADANI AND ORS
SLP(C) No. 18316/2025
EARLIER HEARING’S IN TOP COURT
The producers of the controversial movie ‘Udaipur Files’ on July 14th moved to the Supreme Court after the Delhi High Court stopped the release of the film.
This legal action was taken on Monday, as the producers challenged the High Court’s order, which had directed a stay on the film’s release.
ALSO READ: “Udaipur Files Release Stayed”: Delhi HC Acts to Protect Fair Trial and Communal Harmony
The lawyer representing the film’s producers brought the matter before the Supreme Court Bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi, seeking an urgent hearing.
The Supreme Court agreed to list the matter within a day or two. Senior Advocate Gaurav Bhatia appeared in the court on behalf of the movie producers.
Earlier, on July 10, the Delhi High Court had asked the Central Government to use its revisional powers under Section 6 of the Cinematograph Act to review the film before its release. This order was given in response to three different petitions, one of which was filed by Maulana Arshad Madani, the President of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind.
His petition claimed that the film was harmful and showed the Muslim community in a negative light, as it is based on the murder of tailor Kanhaiya Lal Teli in Udaipur.
The film was earlier planned to be released on July 11.
ALSO READ: “Will Go To Supreme Court”: Amit Jani After Delhi HC Blocks Udaipur Files
The High Court Bench, comprising Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Anish Dayal, said the petitioners could take their complaints to the Central Government. Meanwhile, the Court ordered that the release of the movie should be stopped until the government makes a decision.
“Accordingly, we permit the petitioner to approach the Central government within two days and in case the petitioners approach the Central government, he may also make a prayer for interim measures. Once the petitioner approaches the Central government with a revision petition, the same shall be considered and decided within a period of one week after giving opportunity to the producer,”
-the High Court stated.
Before this, the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) told the High Court that they had already removed some parts of the movie that were considered problematic. The Court then asked the producers to arrange a special screening of both the film and its trailer for the lawyers involved in the case.
These included Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Maulana Madani, and Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma, who represented the CBFC.
After watching the movie during this screening, Kapil Sibal made a strong statement in the courtroom:
“This is not right for the country. This is not art. This is cinematic vandalism,”
-he said.
After listening to all parties during a detailed hearing on July 10, the High Court put a temporary stay on the release and said the matter should be taken up by the Central Government for further decisions.
Now, the producers of Udaipur Files have gone to the Supreme Court, requesting that this stay be cancelled so that the film can be released.
The Supreme Court of India on July 9th refused to urgently hear and stop the release of the upcoming movie ‘Udaipur Files’, which is based on the tragic murder of tailor Kanhaiya Lal Teli in Udaipur, Rajasthan.
The movie was set to release on July 11.
A vacation bench comprising Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia and Justice Joymalya Bagchi heard the matter on Wednesday.
The plea had been filed by Mohammed Javed, one of the accused in the murder case. He approached the apex court seeking to delay or block the release of the movie, claiming it could affect his right to a fair trial.
The Supreme Court, however, declined urgent listing of the matter and gave liberty to the petitioner to raise the issue again when the court reopens after the summer break on July 14.
“Mention before court concerned on reopening. Let it be released,”
-the Bench said, clearly refusing to interfere with the film’s release at this stage.
According to the petitioner’s counsel, the movie only shows one side of the incident, which is the prosecution’s version, and that could create a biased opinion in the public even before the trial concludes.
“It is releasing on Friday. Trailer was released on July 4. They are showing only prosecution side,”
-the counsel argued before the court.
The bench was not convinced and allowed the movie to be released as scheduled.
The film focuses on the shocking murder of Kanhaiya Lal, who was brutally beheaded in broad daylight by two men in Udaipur. The attackers also recorded the murder and shared the horrifying video online.
This act was reportedly carried out in retaliation after Kanhaiya Lal allegedly made a social media post supporting Nupur Sharma, a BJP spokesperson who had made controversial remarks about Prophet Muhammad.
The investigation of this gruesome case was handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA). A total of 11 people were booked in relation to the crime.
The plea filed by accused Mohammed Javed (Accused No. 8) argues that the movie may disturb communal peace and also influence the ongoing trial.
As per the petition,
“The trailer and promotional material of the said film contain content that is provocative and communally sensitive, which has the potential to disturb the religious harmony of the country and interfere with the ongoing judicial proceedings, as the matter is currently sub judice before a Special NIA Court.”
The accused pointed out that the trial has not concluded, and any portrayal of them as guilty in the film could seriously impact their legal rights.
“Releasing such a trailer at this juncture, portraying the accused as guilty and the story as conclusively true, has the potential to seriously prejudice the ongoing proceedings. It compromises the presumption of innocence and risks influencing public opinion in a manner that could affect the fairness of the trial. This directly impacts the right to a free and fair trial of the Petitioner, as guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India,”
-the plea stated.
The petitioner has requested the Supreme Court to stop the movie’s release and cancel the censor certificate already issued by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).
The plea was filed through lawyers Pyoli and Ejaz Qureshi.
In a related development, another petition against the film, filed by Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind, is also pending before the Delhi High Court.
BACKGROUND
Kanhaiya Lal, a Hindu tailor from Udaipur, was murdered in broad daylight in June 2022. The accused—Mohammad Riyaz and Mohammad Ghous—filmed the act and circulated a video where they claimed that the murder was done in revenge.
They alleged that Kanhaiya Lal had supported former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma on social media. Sharma had made controversial remarks about the Prophet, which had led to widespread outrage.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) took over the investigation of this high-profile case. Several serious charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Indian Penal Code (IPC) were filed against the accused. The case is currently being tried in the Special NIA Court in Jaipur, and the legal proceedings are still ongoing.
Mohammed Javed, one of the accused, now says that the movie could create a public narrative that might harm his legal defense. He wants the movie to be stopped until the verdict is delivered. However, as of now, the Supreme Court has allowed the release, and the film ‘Udaipur Files’ is set to hit the screens as planned.
CASE TITLE:
MOHAMMED JAVED vs UNION OF INDIA AND ORS.
W.P.(C) No. 647/2025 and
JANI FIREFOX MEDIA PVT. LTD vs MAULANA ARSHAD MADANI AND ORS
SLP(C) No. 18316/2025
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