Lakshmi's NTR movie row: RGV to move Andhra HC against EC's order stalling its release

Ram Gopal Varma has now announced that he would move the Court against the contradictory stand of the Election Commission (EC) to stop the release of his movie Lakshmi's NTR in Andhra Pradesh.

After a month-long wait, Ram Gopal Varma had planned to release Lakshmi's NTR in Andhra Pradesh on May 1. But on April 30, the Election Commission directed him not to release, reiterating its April 10 order not to screen it till further orders. In reply to the latter's letter, AP Chief Electoral Officer Gopal Krishna Dwivedi informed that it should not be released until the model code of conduct was in force.

This order came as a big shock for Ram Gopal Varma, who has now decided to wage war against the EC. He tweeted, "Point 8C in EC 's below letter combined with AP high court judgement is why we planned to release today .we going to court against the contradictory stand of EC now to stop film after giving permission to release for reasons best known to it and we all know the force behind responsible."

Point 8C in the letter of the EC reads as follows:

8. Section 126 (I) of the Representative of the People Act, 1951 prescribes that (1) No person shall—

(a) convene, hold, attend, join or address any public meeting or procession in connection with an election; or

(b) display to the public any election matter by means of cinematograph, television or other similar apparatus; or

(c) propagate any election matter to the public by holding, or by arranging the holding of, any musical concert or any theatrical performance or any other entertainment or amusement with a view to attracting the members of the public thereto, in any polling area during the period of forty-eight hours ending with the hour fixed for the conclusion of the poll for any election in that polling area.

Lakshmi's NTR is a biopic based on the life of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N T Rama Rao. The movie, which deals with the last days of NTR's life, showcases Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu as the backstabber of his father-in-law NTR. The TDP got a court order for stalling its release in Andhra Pradesh, while was released in other parts of the globe and received a good response.