Movie goers may carry eatables inside theatres

JAMMU: The state high court on Friday directed the Cinema Halls owners in the state not to prohibit cinema viewers from carrying their own food articles and water inside the theatre, on which there has been an illegal ban since forever, among a slew of instructions passed to District Magistrates.
A Division Bench of the State High Court Comprising Justice Tashi Rabstan and Justice Sanjay Kumar Gupta also directed the state government as well as Licensing Authority and every District Magistrate to ensure proper uniformity be maintained with respect to the sale price of tickets in all the cinemas of the State in terms of Rule 87(i) & (ii) of the Jammu & Kashmir Cinemas (Regulation) Rules, 1975.

They were also directed to ensure strict compliance of Rule 88(ix), which provides that no person between the age of 5 years to 18 years shall be admitted to any show commencing before 3.00 PM except on Sunday or any notified holiday.

Asking the District Magistrates to see and ensure that its directions are complied with forthwith in its true letter and spirit, the court called for stern action against the violating Cinema Hall owners.

“The District Magistrates may revoke the license of such Multiplex/Cinema Hall owners,” it said, adding, “if, henceforth, any District Magistrate fails to comply with the aforesaid directions, the State Government is directed to take appropriate action against such District Magistrate under rules.”

The court further directed complete ban of polythene bags in the Multiplexes/Cinema Halls and erection of sign boards at conspicuous places requesting the cinema viewers not to litter waste food articles, bottles etc.

The court was hearing a Public Interest Litigation seeking a direction to the Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, for ensuring proper implementation of Jammu & Kashmir Cinemas (Regulation) Rules, 1975 in its letter and spirit.

At the outset, DB observed that the main grievance projected in the PIL is that the cinema owners have prohibited the movie viewers from taking outside the eatable items inside the cinema halls, rather such viewers are forced to take junk food/eatables from inside the cinema hall premises at very exorbitant rates, thereby playing with the health of people, especially young generation as well as diabetic patients
.
“The cinema goers cannot be forced or compelled by the multiplexes/cinema hall owners to purchase food and water from theatre premises nor they can be prohibited from carrying food items into malls and multiplexes from outside. Even the viewers, who come along with their infants/babies, also need milk to feed them because they cannot be kept empty stomach for about three long hours,” it observed.

DB further observed that as regards security related issues, the multiplexes/cinema hall owners have installed metal detectors and even the security guards/staff employed there though can frisk the people to a limited extent, but they cannot take away all the food items, especially when there is no legal or statutory provision prohibiting people from carrying personal food articles into film theatres, that too when vendors are allowed to serve inside at exorbitant prices.