Lahore High Court banned film ‘Phantom’ from release in Pakistan

Pakistan’s Lahore High Court on 20 August 2015 banned the release of Bollywood movie ‘Phantom’ in Pakistan. It also banned its airing on the cable networks and its sale in the form of CDs.

The order to ban the release of the Saif Ali Khan-starrer film in the theaters in Pakistan was issued by Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan of the Lahore High Court.

The decision was taken on a plea of by Jamaatud Dawa (JuD) chief and Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed. The petitioner in his plea argued that the film set on post-26/11 attacks contains filthy propaganda against him and his outfit. The film could be a direct threat to his life as the dialogues of the film could poison the minds of the public.

Before issuing a short-order on the film, which was scheduled to release on 28 August 2015, the judge asked that if the film is banned in cinemas what the government could do to stop it from being available in the markets in CDs.

It questioned the government after it observed that Indian and other movies are easily available after their release in the market

The film based on crime author Hussain Zaidi’s novel ‘Mumbai Avengers’ is set in the aftermath of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks and deals with global terrorism.

In the past, Saif Ali Khan's 'Agent Vinod' and Salman Khan's 'Ek Tha Tiger' were also banned from being screened in cinema halls in the country although they are freely available on CDs and DVDs in Pakistan.

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