But the fundamentalists, in this case, questioned the authority of the statutory board and succeeded in having their way. It is a pity that validity of the Censor Board Certificate has been held hostage to the approval of clergy.

Janata Party President Dr. Subramanian Swamy said that now Censor Board should go to SC to strike down the “de facto Sharia Court mute order. Otherwise, Public Interest Litigation also may be filed.”

Just two days before this deal, the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) chairperson Leela Samson in a state of shock after the ban on the film "Vishwaroopam", said that the act is “an infringement on freedom of expression”.

"This is hounding of an artist, a man who is an icon of Tamil Nadu. We are sensitive to issues. The group objecting to 'Vishwaroopam' has the freedom not to view it. We will object to the language used by the lawyer representing the Tamil Nadu government against the censor board," Samson added.

The Madras High Court Tuesday ruled in favour of "Vishwaroopam" and revoked the ban by the state government. It, however, said the administrative step was to be taken by the government. Later, a two-judge bench of the high court on Wednesday last upheld and re-imposed the ban on the film.

"It is absolutely unacceptable. We have certified hundreds and thousands of films but only with 'Vishwaroopam', people find, it has not been done with due diligence? This is an infringement on freedom of expression," Samson said.

The argument presented by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha was that her government was forced to ban the film fearing possible law and order problem. “We can provide protection to the film in each and every theatre,” she commented.