Ex-Goa CM Alemao's plea to stop release of film starring Nawazuddin rejected by Bombay HC
Churchill had filed a civil defamation suit before the Civil Judge Senior Division at Margao last year seeking an order of temporary injunction to restrain the production companies and director of the film from carrying on any further production of the movie and from releasing it in theatres or OTT platform or any other source in India or abroad. The veteran politician sought Rs 100 crore in damages or compensation claiming that the film was 'solely based on the narrative given by Costao Fernandes, in complete ignorance of various judicial proceedings that were initiated in respect of the incident, and which are contained in various judgments of this Court and of the Supreme Court'.
In 1991, Costao Fernandes, an intelligence officer attached to the Customs House at Mormugao in South Goa, claimed to have received credible information that the Alemao brothers and their associates were planning to smuggle gold into the country. Fernandes had chased and intercepted a car allegedly driven by Churchill's brother Alvernaz and in the ensuing scuffle and knife-fight, Alvernaz was grievously hurt and later succumbed to his injuries.
In the petition, Churchill, representing the entire Alemao family consisting of his brothers – Joaquim, the late Alvernaz and the late Ciabro and their spouses and children – said the movie, if allowed to be produced and released, would portray him and his family as a 'villain' and would allow the producers to make commercial gain at the cost of his reputation and political career and of his family members.
His counsel submitted 'that the incident being well-known, in the absence of also including the findings exonerating the plaintiff [Churchill] of the customs and criminal case, the public would carry an impression that the plaintiff and his family were smugglers'.
In their reply, the respondents said that the movie does not purport to be a true story and is a fictional account in which the real-life incident 'may have inspired the film'. The respondents said that the film is merely a narrative based on Costao's version of events, 'with creative liberties of fictionalization and dramatization.'
The lower court had rejected the application for temporary injunction, observing that the plaintiff sought an order of restraint on the assumption that the film would be defamatory of the plaintiff and of his deceased brother.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by ZEE5 (@zee5)
In an order Wednesday – a day before the movie was released — the HC bench of Justice Valmiki Menezes, said the findings of the trial court do not call for any interference in appeal. The High Court said 'the plaintiff has not made out any prima facie case and spelt out in what manner his reputation has been affected, based upon news articles which are, not proved to be at the behest and on information given by the defendants. The film is yet to be released and the plaintiff is basing his claim on a conjecture that the film would contain defamatory material.'
'…At least at this stage, before the release of the film, the defendants have set out a case that the film is a work of fiction, dramatizing an incident which is described in records of various courts. The defendants also claim that the film is based on inspiration derived from the facts stated in court records and from the version of the incident stated by Costao. The claim is that the film is a work purely of fiction and dramatizing the incident to give it a certain entertainment value for viewers. There are enough of safeguards also placed in the form of a disclaimer. Nothing is shown on record to draw any likeness of any character in the film, which is not yet released, or for the plaintiff to believe from any material that the character has a likeness similar to the plaintiff or any members of his family,' the court said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
8 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Madras High Court orders commencement of trial
The Madras High Court on Monday (August 11, 2025) ordered the commencement of trial in a 10-year-old defamation suit filed by former Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni seeking ₹100 crore in damages from Zee Media Corporation, journalist Sudhir Chaudhary, retired Indian Police Service (IPS) officer G. Sampath Kumar, and News Nation Network for having dragged his name in to the IPL betting scam. Justice C.V. Karthikeyan also appointed an advocate commissioner to record the evidence of Mr. Dhoni on mutually convenient premises, to all the parties involved and their counsel, in Chennai. The advocate commissioner was appointed as Mr. Dhoni's personal appearance at the High Court, for the examination in chief as well as cross-examination by the defendants, might lead to chaos due to him being a celebrity. The orders were passed after senior counsel P.R. Raman submitted an affidavit sworn by Mr. Dhoni expressing his intent to proceed with the trial in the defamation suit pending since 2014. The cricketer said that he would be available for examination as well as cross-examination between October 20, 2025, and December 10, 2025, and that the venue and specific dates could be fixed on the basis of mutual convenience. 'The above request is made with the intent to avoid any undue delay (in disposal of the suit pending in the High Court for over a decade) and to support the fair, just, and speedy adjudication of the suit. I state that I shall extend my full co-operation with the Advocate Commissioner and comply with all directions issued by this honourable court regarding the trial and the recording of evidence,' the affidavit read. When Mr. Raman, assisted by advocate Sandesh Saravanan, requested the court to consider appointing a retired district judge as an advocate commissioner for recording evidence, Justice Karthikeyan said that he would pick a name from a list maintained by the High Court. He also stated that the defamation suit would be listed for hearing before the court after the completion of recording of evidence in full. The trial in the suit had got delayed for over 10 years because of multiple applications taken out by the parties seeking one relief or another. In December 2023, a Division Bench of Justices S.S. Sundar (since retired) and Sunder Mohan had convicted the retired IPS officer of criminal contempt of court and sentenced him to 15 days of simple imprisonment. However, the Supreme Court stayed the punishment in 2024. Mr. Dhoni had filed the contempt plea against the retired IPS officer for having made contumacious remarks against the Supreme Court as well as the High Court while defending the defamation suit. In July 2022, the then Advocate General R. Shunmugasundaram had granted permission to the cricketer to proceed with the contempt plea, after being satisfied that the remarks made by Mr. Kumar, in his written statement to the suit, amounted to scandalising court proceedings.
Indian Express
8 minutes ago
- Indian Express
‘Ranveer Allahabadia kuch bhi bol dete hai': Ashish Chanchalani on India's Got Latent row, says police came to him first as Samay Raina, Apoorva Mukhija couldn't be found
Samay Raina found himself at the centre of a major controversy after YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia's inappropriate remark on India's Got Latent went viral, sparking widespread outrage and leading to multiple FIRs. In a recent interaction, Ashish Chanchlani, who was a panelist on the infamous episode, opened up about the aftermath of the controversy and revealed how he became the first person the police approached, as the other panelists were either out of town or could not be located. Speaking to Faridoon Shahryar about that tumultuous period, Ashish recalled, 'So many things happened, those two months were turmoil and it was like this for everyone who was on the show. At that time, Samay was in Vancouver, they were not able to find Apoorva and she was scared also, Ranveer (Ranveer Allahbadia) also vanished, so only I was left in Bandra and the police knew where I live, so they came to me first and I had to record my statements with the police.' Ashish expressed his frustration while reflecting on how serious the matter was. 'It might have been a clickbait, a reel for many people, but to be in front of the police and the government officials, it's very serious,' he said. When asked why he was questioned despite not making any controversial remarks, he explained, 'People will say that you didn't do anything on the show, but when you sit in front of the police and every word that you say is converted into a transcript then you realise how careful you have to be. I didn't even say anything on the show. I just laughed in one part of the show, and even that was taken into account.' He further revealed that the authorities scrutinised every reaction, including his laughter, which he had to justify in detail. 'I had to explain to them why I laughed because there were some inside jokes going on with Samay and also, I was laughing at Ranveer's stupidity, not at the comment that he made.' Addressing Ranveer's controversial remark that triggered the outrage, Ashish said, 'I know Ranveer from last seven years. I know that he says anything in fun and games.' He added, 'It was difficult for me, but it was very difficult for Samay, Apoorva and others.' Following the controversy, all episodes of India's Got Latent were removed from YouTube. The Supreme Court, in a recent order, even banned Allahbadia from posting content on social media, before later revoking the ban.
News18
17 minutes ago
- News18
Kerala Doctor Duped Of Rs 4.43 Crore In WhatsApp Trading Scam, Two Arrested
The Kerala police detected as many as 18 more accounts in the name of various individuals to transfer the money earned through online fraud. A doctor in Kerala was scammed of Rs 4.43 crore after falling victim to a fraudulent WhatsApp scheme. The state's cybercrime unit has arrested two men in connection with the case, according to officials quoted by IANS. The accused have been identified as Mehbubasha Farooq and Rijaz, and they were arrested in Chennai by the Kannur City Cyber Crime Police. While Farooq hails from Chennai, Rijaj is a resident of Perumbavoor in Ernakulam district and has been settled in Chennai. The two accused allegedly ran a scam via WhatsApp, luring the victim with promises of high returns from investments in a fake online trading platform. According to police, the accused added the doctor — a resident of Mattannur in Kerala's Kannur district — to a WhatsApp group in June, where they promoted an online share trading scheme and promised large profits. The victim was asked to send money to several bank accounts under the pretext of a 'wealth profit plan' linked to a fictitious company named Upstock. 'We have traced about Rs 40 lakh deposited by the accused in their accounts. Besides this, the police detected as many as 18 more accounts in the name of various individuals to transfer the money earned through online fraud. The matter is under investigation now," said the officer. He also confirmed that no links to terrorism had been uncovered during the inquiry. Though the trading app would show the profits earned, he found the platform unresponsive and could not withdraw the amount, prompting him to approach the police to file a complaint with the police on June 25. 'The victim was led to believe he was making lucrative investments, but the entire setup was a sham," the cyber police said. The incident came to light after the cybercrime team tracked down the suspects by following the trail of bank account numbers and mobile phones used in the fraud. A deeper investigation led them to Chennai, where the two accused were arrested. The officer added that they are now looking into whether a larger network is involved and if there are more victims connected to the online scam. (With inputs from IANS) view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
