Case filed against Anupam Kher's 'The Accidental Prime Minister'
Anupam Kher's upcoming movie The Accidental Prime Minister has landed in a soup after a case was filed against it in a Bihar court on Wednesday. Muzaffarpur's Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) court accepted the case, against Kher and others, on the request of lawyer Sudhir Kumar Ojha and fixed January 8 as the hearing date. Ojha alleged the movie damages image of renowned people.
Ojha claimed leaders like Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Mayawati, Lalu Prasad Yadav, and LK Advani were shown in poor light in the movie. The case was registered under IPC Sections 295, 153, 153A, 293, 504 and 120B relating to promoting enmity between different groups, the sale of obscene objects, insult with intent to provoke breach of peace and criminal conspiracy.
In the Vijay Gutte directorial, based on Sanjaya Baru's book by the same name, Kher essays the role of former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh. Suzanne Bernert, Ahana Kumar and Arjun Mathur play Sonia, Priyanka and Rahul Gandhi respectively. The movie focuses on Singh's tenure as PM for 10 years and the corruption cases which mired the UPA-2 rule.
The release, ahead of Lok Sabha elections, has led to political battlelines being drawn. When BJP tweeted the trailer, it gave critics fodder. BJP's Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore defended the tweet saying they were just giving the movie best wishes. There were also reports claiming that Congress is mulling a ban on the movie in Madhya Pradesh, but party spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala denied it.
Amid the brouhaha, Kher said the movie was his best work. Speaking to Republic TV, the actor revealed he turned down the role initially, but later took it as a challenge. On the controversy it courted, he had said people have a right to know what happens inside PMO. He said those slamming him should rather recommend his name for Oscars.
