Why 'Jana Nayagan' Referred To Review Committee? Here's Madras HC Verdict Highlights

Chennai: A Division Bench of the Madras High Court had set aside a single-judge order granting a U/A certificate to Vijay's 'Jana Nayagan' on Tuesday.

In its verdict, the bench mentioned there is nothing wrong in sending the film for review as it contains scenes portraying foreign powers creating religious conflict and unrest in India.

The film production company had earlier applied to the Censor Board for a certificate on December 18, 2025. The Censor Board accepted the application (No. 01031912202500014) on December 19 and on December 22, a five-member committee that viewed the film, informed the production company that some scenes needed to be removed to grant a U/A 16+ certificate.

Accepting the recommendation, the production company removed a few scenes and resubmitted the film for a censor certificate on December 24 and was reportedly informed by the Censor Board on December 29 that they had decided to grant a U/A 16+ certificate.

However, when the film crew tried to upload the script for certification, they were unable to do so. Following this, the production company sought clarification from the Censor Board on December 31 and January 1. The film crew was informed by the Chairman of the Censor Board on January 5 that they had decided to send the film to the review committee because a "security force emblem" was depicted in the film.

Subsequently, the film crew filed a case in the High Court on January 7, challenging the Censor Board Chairman's sudden decision to send the film for review, despite having already decided to grant a UA 16+ certificate. Justice P T Asha, who heard the case, delivered a verdict on January 9, quashing the Censor Board Chairman's order that the film should be sent for review.

The Censor Board immediately appealed against the single judge's order in the High Court. The Chief Justice's bench, which heard the appeal, questioned how a judgment could be delivered without giving the opposing party an opportunity to respond in any case. It also asked how the Censor Board could be ordered to issue a certificate without being given sufficient time, and consequently, imposed an interim stay on the single judge's order.

Following this, the production company filed a case in the Supreme Court challenging the High Court's stay order. The Supreme Court, which heard this appeal on January 15, refused to interfere with the stay order and directed the High Court to expedite the case.

As per the Supreme Court's order, on January 20, arguments were presented before the High Court Chief Justice's bench by both the Censor Board and the film production company. After hearing both arguments, the bench reserved the judgment without specifying a date.

The bench of Chief Justice M M Srivastav and Justice Arul Murugan delivered the verdict on the 'Jana Nayagan' yesterday.

Key Points In The Judgment:

• A single judge cannot issue an order that was not requested in the petition. The single judge issued the order by interpreting the documents based on certain legal technicalities.
• The single judge should have given sufficient time for the Censor Board to explain its authority and to respond.
• The production company did not submit evidence in court to prove that a decision had been made to grant 'Jana Nayagan' a UA 16+ certificate. The Censor Board has clarified that the information was conveyed to the film production company only as a matter of information.
• Based on the complaint filed by a member of the examining committee, it was decided to send the film for re-examination.
• The film contains scenes portraying foreign powers creating large-scale religious conflict and unrest in India. These scenes are likely to disrupt religious harmony and similar dialogues are also present.
• Since this would harm religious harmony, it was decided to send the film to a nine-member review committee.
• As there are numerous scenes related to the armed forces, and since the initial examining committee did not include experts on the subject, it was decided to send the film for re-examination.
• Since the film needs to be verified before release, sending the film for re-examination becomes mandatory.
• The Censor Board chairman should have been given time to respond.
• It has been recommended that the film be viewed with representatives of the armed forces. Since this is a very important matter, the Censor Board should also be given an opportunity.
• It would not be appropriate to inquire into the authority of the Censor Board chairman. Therefore, the order issued by the single judge is set aside.
• The film crew is given the opportunity to file a fresh petition and seek relief.
• The single judge was ordered to expeditiously hear and conclude the case after giving sufficient time to the Censor Board to respond to that petition.
• The bench stated that the single judge can decide, after hearing all parties, whether or not to send the film for review.

H Vinoth directed 'Jana Nayagan' features Pooja Hegde, Bobby Deol and Mamitha Baiju. Produced by KVN Productions, it also stars Gautham Vasudev Menon, Prakash Raj, Narain and Priyamani.

Also Read

1. Madras HC Sets Aside Single Judge Order Directing Censor Certificate To 'Jana Nayagan'
2. Jana Nayagan Censor Row: No Relief For Thalapathy Vijay Starrer; Controversy Explained