India's SC rejects bid to ban film

India's top court yesterday rejected a final bid by two states to ban a Bollywood film about a mythical Hindu queen which sparked violent protests by radical groups.

Threats by Hindu fringe groups against "Padmaavat", which is to be released tomorrow, have forced police to step up security around cinemas intending to show the movie.

The Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh state governments asked the country's Supreme Court to retract an earlier ruling stopping states from banning "Padmaavat".

"We do not find any merit in the applications," the court said yesterday.

"What is implicit in your argument is that you are incapable of maintaining law and order in your state," Supreme Court judge AM Khanwilkar told lawyers for the state governments at the hearing.

"You first implement our order and then if there is any violence then we can examine it on case to case basis."

Protesters claim the film falsely depicts a romance between 14th century Hindu queen Padmavati and Muslim ruler Alauddin Khilji. The producers deny this and insist the movie portrays her respectfully.

The Supreme Court last Thursday overturned a ban on the release of the film imposed by Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab and other states saying it violated creative freedoms.