New Delhi, June 14: The Supreme Court’s decision to halt the release of the controversial film “Hamare Baarah” has been hailed by Muslim intellectuals and religious leaders, who view the move as a commendable step in line with constitutional values.
Noted writer-activist and former member of the Planning Commission, Syeda Saiyidain Hameed, expressed her approval in a conversation with Ziya us Salam of The Hindu. She stated, “The court’s decision is commendable. Hamare Baarah is an instrument to denigrate Islam, to deepen hatred, and distort the teachings of the Quran. Islam accords greatest dignity and power to women. This deliberate distortion was rightly rejected by the Court. May the people of India stand together against this deliberate ignominy.”
Dr. Zafarul Islam Khan, newly re-elected president of All India Majlis-e-Mushawarat, also supported the Supreme Court’s stay. He commented, “Today’s stay order issued by the Supreme Court about the controversial film Hamare Baarah [previously called Hum Do, Hamare Baarah] is encouraging. The court has directed that the film should not be released until a petition against it in Bombay High Court is disposed of.” He criticised the film for presenting a stereotypical image of the Muslim community not abiding by norms of family planning.
Mr. Khan drew attention to a spate of films promoting either Islamophobia or Hindutva politics. “This is the latest in a series of hate films aimed at defaming the Indian Muslim community using fake and concocted ‘facts’ like The Kashmir Files, The Kerala Story, and 72 Hoorain, etc. These films have one agenda: to criminalise Muslims and polarise society in service of the Hindutva agenda. It is hoped that today’s stay order on one such hate film will discourage others who are working on similar projects. In any case, people should go to courts whenever such attempts are made to divide our society,” Mr. Khan said.
His words received loud support from Jamaat-e-Islami Hind. “We welcome the Supreme Court’s decision to stay the release of the film. However, we do not know yet what the final verdict would be,” said Malik Moatasim Khan, Vice President of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind. He also urged filmmakers to avoid making films which distort the facts and instead concentrate on films on the burning issues of the day, including unemployment and inflation. “The film is just propaganda. It is an Islamophobic film likely to impact communal relations. It presents women too in a bad light. Maybe a hundred years ago, women could have had so many children. In today’s India, the fertility rates of Muslims have declined sharply as indeed of all communities,” Mr. Moatasim said.
Earlier, the Supreme Court stayed the June 14 release of Annu Kapoor’s movie Hamare Baarah following allegations that the film is derogatory to the Islamic faith as well as to married Muslim women. A vacation bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta took note of the submissions of lawyer Fauzia Shakil, who represented the petitioner Azhar Basha Tamboli, and asked the Bombay High Court to take an expeditious decision on the plea.
