KATHMANDU, Feb 19: The Patan High Court has banned the promotion and publicity of the film 'Laj Sharanam' on social media and through media outlets, as it prepares for release.
Hearing a writ petition filed by former minister Mohammad Aftab Alam, a division bench of Justices Lal Bahadur Kunwar and Hemant Rawal issued an interim order on Tuesday, according to Arjun Prasad Acharya, the information officer of the High Court.
Former Minister Alam filed the petition, naming the Film Development Board as the respondent and alleging that the film used a character resembling his own face without his permission.
Mayor Balen raps in Film 'Laj Sharanam'
In the petition, he claimed the film closely imitated his facial features, attire, physical build, hairstyle, mannerisms and speech, and demanded a halt to its release.
Section 3, 8(1) of the Motion Picture (Production, Exhibition, and Distribution) Act, 2026 BS requires submitting the script of a documentary to the Central Film Censorship Committee under the Ministry of Communication, Nepal Government, for approval based on a recommendation from the Film Development Board. The authorities found that they had not made a decision as per Section 8(3).
The order states, "The court has issued an interim order in the names of the respondents, directing them not to promote or disseminate advertisements of the film 'Laj Sharanam' on social media or other public media, and to refrain from publishing or broadcasting related posters." The order further instructs the respondents to receive notice of this decision as per Rule 42(3) of the High Court Rules, 2073.
JPT Creations will release the film 'Laj Sharanam' on Shivaratri, which falls on February 26.
