Theatre ordered to pay Rs 50,000 fine for denying viewers chance to watch film from beginning
Malappuram: A district consumer forum here has directed a theatre owner to pay a fine of Rs 50,000 for denying viewers the chance to watch a movie from the beginning despite booking the seats and reaching the cinema hall on time.
The Malappuram District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has given the direction to the Plaza theatre at Perinthalmanna on a joint complaint filed by Elamkulam residents Sarath, Anand, Sujeesh, Vijesh and Nikhil.
Denying the audience the opportunity to watch the film in its entirety was deemed by the commission to be a deficiency in service, a release from the Public Relations Department in Malappuram.
The complaint was filed by the people who went to watch the Tamil movie 'Ponniyin Selvan: 2' on April 30, 2023. According to the complainants, they reached the theatre at 6.45 PM but were entry citing cleaning work being done before the show. They alleged that they were misled by the theatre management.
When they were allowed to enter the theatre at 7.10 PM, the movie had been playing for 10 minutes already, they said. They alleged that the theatre authorities refused to play the movie from the beginning citing their tight schedule due to the long duration of the movie. However, the theatre authorities claimed that the complainants reached the complex at 7.05 pm and they were not deliberately denied entry.
"Theatre authorities failed to fix the timings for the show and subsequent cleaning. The viewers have the right to enter the theatre conveniently and watch the movie in its entirety in a clean environment," a bench comprising President K Mohandas and members Preeti Sivaraman and C V Muhammad Ismail said in the order."
As there were lapses, a compensation of Rs 50,000 should be paid to the five complainants. Rs 10,000 is awarded as costs," the bench further said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Kejriwal resorting to 'vendetta politics', says BJP after MP Sandeep Pathak booked
New Delhi (PTI): The BJP on Saturday accused Aam Aadmi Party's national convenor Arvind Kejriwal of vendetta politics after Punjab Police booked Rajya Sabha MP Sandeep Pathak, who recently defected to the BJP.
In an X post, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla claimed that Kejriwal is misusing the Punjab Police to settle political scores, and Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has become a party to it.
"Two FIRs have been filed against Sandeep Pathak, who until recently was in the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) as a Rajya Sabha MP and general secretary (organisation). What is baffling is the shameless, brazen vendetta politics being pursued by Arvind Kejriwal, with Bhagwant Mann complicit in it," Poonawalla said.
ALSO READ: BJP, TMC hail SC directions on counting of votes for West Bengal polls
"It is clear this has been done out of vendetta politics by Kejriwal, who is extremely vengeful and vindictive, and misuses the Punjab Police to pursue such political vendetta," he alleged.
Questioning the timing of the FIRs, Poonawalla said, "If these cases existed from the beginning, why were FIRs not filed earlier? If he was corrupt, why was he kept in the party for so long, especially when he was the general secretary (organisation)? Has any new material surfaced in the last few days, or has the alleged corruption occurred only now?"
He alleged that Kejriwal has an "old habit" of targeting political opponents and dissenters.
"We have seen how he has used the police against rivals, including Congress leaders. This is his old habit," Poonawalla said, referring to the withdrawal of Rajya Sabha MP Harbhajan Singh's security.
Poonawalla claimed that several leaders who had left AAP over the years, including Yogendra Yadav, Mayank Gandhi, Ashish Khetan, Ashutosh and Alka Lamba, were "hounded".
He accused the party of failing to introspect.
"Instead of introspecting on how they have changed -- from Anna to Lalu, from Lokpal to corruption -- they are indulging in vendetta politics, trying to victimise people using the strong arm of the law. This reflects an Emergency-like mindset and a dictatorial, Hitlerian mindset," he said.
According to sources, two FIRs have been lodged against Pathak under non-bailable sections.
No further details about the FIRs have been disclosed yet.
On April 24, the AAP suffered a jolt when seven of its 10 Rajya Sabha MPs quit, alleging that Arvind Kejriwal's party has strayed from its principles, values and core morals.
Of the seven MPs -- who were Pathak, Raghav Chadha, Ashok Mittal, Harbhajan Singh, Rajendra Gupta, Vikramjit Sahney and Swati Maliwal -- six were from Punjab.
Later, Rajya Sabha Chairman C P Radhakrishnan officially accepted their merger with the BJP, reducing AAP's strength in the Upper House to three.
