Mumbai: Bombay High Court on Friday paved the way for release of the film, ‘Emergency' by disposing of a petition by Zee Entertainment after the producers and Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) said the matter had been resolved. The film stars BJP MP Kangana Ranaut as former prime minister Indira Gandhi. The CBFC had suggested 13 changes, including four excisions, three modifications, and six insertions before the film could be assigned a UA certificate.

The movie had attracted protests from Sikh groups concerning the portrayal of their community. The CBFC has said that its decision was taken "after considering the representations received from various Sikh groups and directives issued by courts."

The cuts agreed to by the two sides includes deletion of the words, "Sant Bhindranwale Zindabad", from a scene where Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale is shown exiting a jail and a modification where Bhindranwale is saying he is not a "katputli (puppet)" of the Congress Party.

The CBFC had also sought removal of a reference to "Bhindranwale" when prime minister Indira Gandhi is shown in conversation with the army chief. The Censor Board also asked for cuts in scenes where Sikhs are shown to be engaging in violent acts against Hindus and modification of a line that refers to ‘Khalistan'.

Senior counsel Sharan Jagtiani for Zee informed a division bench headed by Justice B P Colabawalla, "We have worked it out." He produced documents showing the arrangement between the parties and requested that the HC may pass an order on the basis of these consent terms.

He said the cuts were carried out based on an email from Manikarnika Films owned by Ranaut, indicating proposed changes. Manikarnika Films has 30 days to submit a master copy of the film after changes are carried out. After submission, the CBFC has 14 days to verify and issue the certificate, the HC said.

The HC said it has neither considered nor commented on the merits of the contentions of either party. On Thursday, the Zee counsel informed the court that the issue of cuts for the film was being resolved by co-producer Manikarnika Films and CBFC.

The division bench comprising Justices B P Colabawalla and F P Pooniwalla had scheduled the matter for Friday after being informed that the issue was being worked out.