ANNUAL INTRA-COLLEGE NOVICE MOOT COURT COMPETITION, 2023

ILS MOOT COURT SOCIETY

ANNUAL INTRA-COLLEGE NOVICE MOOT COURT COMPETITION, 2023

MOOT PROPOSITION FOR PRELIMINARY ROUND

LAW OF CRIMES

SARDAR KHAN & ORS ….APPELLANT

v.

GATE SANSTHAN. … RESPONDENT

BACKDROP

1. Gollywood, is a large group of media professionals working towards providing quality

cinematic experience to the people of the Republic of Stalegate. Sardar Khan has been a global
icon and a leading actor of Gollywood for over 30 years. Sardar Khan, because of his
cinematic magnificence, indisputable charm, glorious goodwill and impeccable acting skills,
is commonly recognised as King Khan who, through his many blockbuster hits, has won the
confidence of the people of Stalegate as a cinematic legend.

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2. Nagma Productions, a leading production house of Gollywood, had engaged Sardar Khan
to play the lead role in an upcoming movie called Balwan, along with Priyadarshani, a two-
time national award winning actress. In Balwan, Sardar Khan and Priyadarshani are to be seen
together in a three-hour movie filled with action, romance, drama and suspense. For the
purpose of the direction of the film, Nagma Productions had engaged leading director Purohit
Shetty, known for his brilliant direction of action films.

3. Balwan is a work of fiction based on historical facts depicting the life-story of an influential
man called Veer Balwan, who belonged to the Gate religion and was a patriot who played an
influential role in the independence movement of Stalegate against King’s Landing, who ruled
Stalegate for over 200 years.

4. While the movie was to be released on March 30, 2050, the trailer of the movie was released
on January 30, 2050, with the title track, “Gumnam Rang” being released on February 15,
2050.

5. The trailer gave a snippet of how Balwan grew into being an ardent nationalist of Stalegate
and his tireless efforts to drive Stalegate towards independence. However, the trailer also
contained scenes which gave an account of the bleak side of Balwan’s life in which he is shown
to be rapaciously indulging into drinking, smoking, and gambling. As the movie was based on
the supposed real life events of a national leader, the trailer received wide coverage and crossed
over 50 crore views on Wetube, an online video sharing and social media platform, within a
week.

6. The title track, “Gumnam Rang” was a vibrant and cheerful song shot in the beautiful beach
of Joa with scenic views and colourful costumes. Icing on the cake was added by the
collaboration of the stardom which Sardar Khan and Priyadarshani carried with themselves
individually, which enabled the song to reach a wider audience. The song topped the charts
within a week and by the end of the month, it became the most listened to song of the decade.

THE STORY OF THE GATE SANSTHAN

1. Gate Sansthan is an organisation comprising people from the Gate religion, which is
demographically and numerically the most followed religion in Stalegate. They are ardent

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followers of Veer Balwan and the principles of the Sansthan are centered around the nationalist
philosophies of Balwan and his idea of preservation of the Gate religion as part of a nationalist
agenda. The Sansthan’s primary objective is to work towards the accentuation and propagation
of the Gate religion and its principles, especially the agenda of Veer Balwan. 2. However, the
Sansthan is notorious for, time and again, using violent means like military coups, violent
rebellion, and intolerance towards other religions to achieve their objectives. Additionally they
also aim to incentivise and coerce the common citizenry to follow Gateism and swear
allegiance to their representative flag that was Purple in colour.

PLEA FOR THE BAN OF THE SONG AND THE MOVIE

1. In the trailer of the movie, Sardar Khan who plays the protagonist Balwan, is portrayed as
an alcoholic and is seen to be indulging into heavy drinking. A scene in the trailer shows
Balwan, in a drunken state, cat-calling a woman and another scene shows him misbehaving
with this staff. The trailer also manifested Balwan’s long standing, nationally recognised and
well-known aversion towards the people belonging from the Aameer community, a minority
community of Stalegate.

2. Additionally, in the title track “Gumnam Rang'', Priyadarshini is wearing a Purple swimsuit
and dancing to the lyrics, “…yeh saare rang aur inke dhang jhoothe hain…”, which translates
into “…all these colours and their attires are falacies…”

3. The Gate Sansthan took objection to the trailer and the song and claimed that the sentiments
of the Gate community were hurt, primarily on two grounds: (i) that the trailer was premised
on false facts and depicted an ill-image of Balwan, who is revered as a national leader, and (ii)
that the song “Gumnam Rang” obscenely manifests Priyadarshini in a Purple swimsuit dancing
to the tune of the song, the lyrics of which point towards Purple being a misleading colour.

4. The Sansthan claimed that the contents of the trailer were devoid of historical facts and
further asserted that the song was obscene and was likely to hurt public sentiments which may
lead to political law and order issues. The Sansthan also went on record to say that the suggested
aversion Balwan towards the Aameer community is a fallacy and portrayal of the same is likely
to cause rifts between the Gate and Aameer community. The Sansthan protested against the
circulation of the trailer and the song and further advocated a ban on the release of the movie.

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5. Since the Sanstan enjoys a considerable amount of support from the general citizenry of
Stalegate, tumultuous protests broke out in different cities of Stalegate in support of a ban on
the circulation of the trailer, song, and the release of the movie. Effigies of Sardar Khan,
Priyadarshini and Purohit Shetty were burnt on the roads and the head office of Nagma
Productions at the capital city, Bedford, was arsoned.

6. The Sansthan subsequently filed an FIR under Sections 153A, 294, 295-A, 298, and 505 of
the Stalegate Penal Code (“SPC”) against Sardar Khan, Priyadarshini and Purohit Shetty
demanding strict punitive action against them and subsequently demanding a ban on the song.
(Refer to Annexure I for a copy of the FIR)

JUDICIAL DEVELOPMENTS

1. The Trial Court, by an order dated March 1, 2050, after duly hearing the parties and
examining the evidence and witnesses, allowed the complaint and ordered the following:

(i) That the challenged content is obscene under Section 294 of SPC,

(ii) That the accused are guilty under Sections 153A, 294, 295-A, 298, and 505 of SPC. It also
noted that the prosecution successfully established beyond reasonable doubt that the accused
had intentions of purposely wounding religious feelings or promoting enmity between people
from different religions by circulation of the challenged trailer with no historical basis,

(iii) It ordered the removal of the trailer and song from all media platforms, including the
personal social media of Sardar Khan, Priyadarshini and Purohit Shetty. It further ordered a
stay on the release of the film.

2. Aggrieved by the said order of the Trial Court, an appeal was filed in the Asgard High Court
by the Respondents demanding the setting aside of the Trial Court order. Their primary claim
was that the

(i) the movie has received a UA certificate for public exhibition from Central Board of Film
Certification (“CBFC”) and the trailer is premised on historical facts authorised by CBFC itself,
and

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(ii) the song was composed and filmed solely for the purpose of entertainment and the
Respondents were being falsely implicated because the movie stars Sardar Khan, who does not
belong to the Gate religion.

3. The High Court agreed to hear the appeal and has listed the matter for a detailed hearing at
a further date.

ISSUES

The High Court is now to address the following issues preferred in the appeal:

1. Whether the challenged song qualifies as obscene under Section 294 of SPC?

2. Whether the circulation of the challenged trailer qualifies as an offence under Sections 153A,
295-A, 298, and 505 of SPC?

3. Whether a stay on the release of the film after receiving CBFC certificate is proportionate?

Argue either for the Appellant/Respondent. For the purpose of this moot problem, the laws of
the Republic of Stalegate are pari materia the laws of the Republic of India.

The participants have the leverage to add or remove charges under the FIR, however,
substantial reasoning has to be provided to the Court for the same.

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Annexure I

FIRST INFORMATION REPORT

(u/s. 154 of CrPC)

1. District: Bedford; PS: Glossgow; Year: 2050

2. FIR No.: 185/2050

3. Date of Occurrence: 15/02/2050

4. Acts:

I. Sardar Khan, u/s 153A, 294, 295-A, 298, and 505 of the Stalegate Penal Code.

II. Priyadarshini, u/s 153A, 294, 295-A, 298, and 505 of the Stalegate Penal Code.

III. Purohit Shetty, u/s 153A, 294, 295-A, 298, and 505 of the Stalegate Penal Code.
IV. Nagma Productions, u/s 153A, 294, 295-A, 298, and 505 of the Stalegate Penal
Code.

5. Occurrence of Offence:

Day: Friday

Time: Approximately 12 AM

6. Information recorded at PS: February 20, 2050, Time: 1:30 PM

7. General Diary Reference Entry No. 5 of February 20, 2050

8. Information Recorded by: Head Constable Tony Stark

9. Written/Oral Information: Oral

10. Place of Occurrence: Nagma Banquet Hall, Nagma Productions, Mall Road, Bedford.
Distance from Police Station: 3.1 km East

11. Complainant Name: Pritam Nigam

12. Nationality: Stalegatian

13. Occupation: Businessman and Head of Gate Sansthan

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14. Details of Known/Unknown/Suspect/Accused with particulars: Accused persons:

I. Sardar Khan, Age 48, S/o Kabeer Khan

Occupation: Actor

II. Priyadarshini, Age 38, D/o Tanishk Malik

Occupation: Actor

III. Purohit Shetty, Age 67, S/o Rishabh Shetty

Occupation: Director

15. Particulars of Injuries Sustained: None

16. FIR Contents-

On January 30, 2050, the trailer of upcoming movie “Balwan” was released. The trailer has
scenes falsely manifesting national hero Veer Balwan indulging into drinking, gambling,
smoking and misbehaving with people, thereby shedding a bad light on him. On February 15,
2050, at the Nagma Banquet Hall, Nagma Productions, Mall Road, Bedford, the title track
“Gumnam Rang'' of the upcoming movie “Balwan'' was released. The song is performed by
Sardar Khan and Priyadarshini. The said song has Priyadarshini wearing a Purple swimsuit
dancing on the lyrics, “…yeh saare rang aur inke dhang jhoothe hain…”, which translates
into “…all these colours and their attires are falacies…” The song, on a prima facie level, is
blatantly obscene and tends to hurt the religious sentiments of the disciples of the Gate
religion. It manifests that the wearing of the colour Purple is a sheer hoax.

17. FIR read to the complainant/informant, admitted to be correctly recorded and a copy
given to the complainant/informant free of cost.

18. Signature/thumb impression of Complainant/Informant: Mr. Pritam Nigam

Signature of Officer-in-charge, Police Station:

Sd/-

Rao Singham

(Senior Police Inspector)

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The moot proposition has been drafted by Saahas Arora (V B.A.L.L.B.), ILS Law College,
Pune for Novice Moot Court Competition, 2023.

Participants are hereby informed not to contact the drafters by any means in their
personal capacity, and non-compliance to the same, will lead to instant disqualification.

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