Andhra Pradesh High Court has ordered stay on the release of Ram Gopal Verma's film "Lakshmi's NTR" till April 3.
The next hearing adjourned till April 3.
The order came a day before the film was to hit the screens.
The judge has directed the producer to arrange special screening of the movie in his chamber to enable him to take a final view in the presence of lawyers from both sides.
P. Sudhakar Reddy, the counsel for the producer, argued that the film cannot be stopped as the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) had already issued the certificate for the release of the movie.
He quoted the orders of the Supreme Court about the release of filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali's movie "Padmavat". He even brought to the notice of the court that the Telangana High Court had approved the release of the film. Reportedly, the producer is going to challenge the verdict of the Andhra Pradesh High Court.
Reacting to the latest development, Ram Gopal Verma took to Twitter and said the filmmaker will approach the Supreme Court to appeal against the Andhra Pradesh High Court order.
"ANNOUNCEMENT #Lakshmis NTR releasing tomorrow on 29th as scheduled all over world and Telangana state except only AP ..We rushing to Supreme Court to appeal against AP court order ..Am calling for press meet tomorrow morning 11 AM at Prasad Lab to talk about all the developments," Verma said.
He further said, "NTR got backstabbed once again by some person in AP by not letting #LakshmIsNTR release, the same way as NTR was not allowed to keep Simhagharjana meeting before his death ..That person surely must be a back stabbing expert ..What say?"
The petitioners sought direction to stop the release of the movie till the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections on April 11.
The film is based on Telugu Desam Party (TDP) founder and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N.T. Rama Rao's second marriage with Lakshmi Parvathi and subsequent developments.
On March 27, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) sought postponement of the film's release.
In a letter addressed to the Chief Electoral Officer of Andhra Pradesh, the TDP requested the poll official to postpone the film's screening until April 11, the day when Andhra Pradesh will go to polls.
The complainant went on to say that this movie will cause fights and hamper security in the region. It also claimed that as this film is being produced by Rakesh Reddy, who is a member of the opposition party, it is against NTR, who founded the TDP.
'Lakshmi's NTR' showcases the events in the later life of late NT Rama Rao, a legendary actor and former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh. The biopic centres around NTR's second marriage to Lakshmi Parvathi, the TDP's landslide victory in the 1994 elections, the revolt and internal party coupled by NTR's son-in-law Chandrababu Naidu in August 1995 and NTR's death a few months later.
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