Months after it has ordered that all the cinema halls in India shall play the national anthem before the feature film starts, the Supreme Court on February 14 clarified that people are not obliged to stand up when the National Anthem is played as and in part of a film or the documentary.
Earlier on December 1 last year, the apex court ordered that “all the cinema halls in India shall play the national anthem before the feature film starts and all present in the hall are obliged to stand up to show respect to the national anthem” as a part of their “sacred obligation”.
The court while pronouncing the ruling had said, “A time has come, the citizens of the country must realize that they live in a nation and are duty bound to show respect to National Anthem, which is the symbol of the constitutional patriotism and inherent national quality.”
Soon after ruling, Kerala police detained 12 persons after they refused to stand up while the national anthem was being played during International Film Festival of Kerala.
SC clarifies that people are not obliged to stand up when the National Anthem is played as and in part of a film or documentary
— ANI (@ANI_news) February 14, 2017
