Karnataka HC stays govt order capping movie ticket prices at Rs 200
Bengaluru, Sep 23 (PTI): The Karnataka High Court stayed enforcement of the Karnataka Cinemas (Regulation) (Amendment) Rules, 2025, which fixed a cap for movie ticket prices at Rs 200 across the state.
Justice Ravi V Hosmani granted the interim stay on Tuesday while hearing a petition filed by the Multiplex Association of India, along with other cinema stakeholders.
Appearing for the petitioners, Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi argued that the government had arbitrarily introduced a proviso under the Karnataka Cinemas (Regulation) Act to cap ticket prices.
"What is the basis for fixing Rs 200, if customers want to pay more for enhanced facilities? There is no rationale in imposing a uniform ceiling," Rohatgi submitted.
He pointed out that a similar government order issued in 2017 was suspended by the High Court and later withdrawn by the state.
Rohatgi contended that the law does not provide any power to the state to fix ticket rates, and such a restriction directly affects the right of cinema owners to conduct their business.
"There cannot be a direction that every ticket should cost Rs 200, just as there cannot be an order that all airlines must operate in economy class," he argued.
Supporting the plea, Senior Advocates Uday Holla and Dhyan Chinnappa submitted that the amendment had been brought in by adding a proviso to Rule 55, which deals with ticket booths and not ticket pricing.
Chinnappa stressed that a proviso cannot enlarge the scope of the main provision. He said the amendment amounted to overreach, as the power to fix prices must flow from clear legislative backing.
Senior Advocate D R Ravishankar, appearing for another theatre operator, argued that movie ticket pricing is a matter of private contract between exhibitors and customers. He maintained that unless the law expressly provides for such regulation, the government cannot interfere.
"Any restriction of this nature must be traceable to legislation and backed by empirical data. Otherwise, it infringes on the right to carry on business under Article 19(1)(g)," he said.
Defending the state's move, Additional Advocate General Ismail Zabiulla submitted that the amendment was introduced in the public interest.
He referred to the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's Budget speech delivered on March 7 and the subsequent draft notification, which had drawn objections from some stakeholders. He argued that the government's authority to regulate cinema halls flows from the Constitution, citing Entry 33 of List II, which empowers states to regulate theatres and entertainment.
The Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) also sought to intervene, but the court observed that the matter was not a public interest litigation and the body would have to justify its locus. The High Court's interim stay will remain in force until further orders.
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Pak police registers case against unidentified gunmen for opening fire on LeT co-founder
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Lahore (PTI): Pakistan's Punjab Police on Friday registered a case against unidentified gunmen for opening fire on Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) co-founder Amir Hamza, who suffered bullet injuries in the attack in Lahore.
On Thursday, two unidentified gunmen riding on a bike opened fire on the vehicle of the private TV channel 24NewsHD TV, owned by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, on Peco Road in Lahore near the TV channel's office.
In the attack, Hamza suffered bullet injuries.
"The FIR has been registered against unidentified gunmen, but it is sealed forthwith," a senior police officer told PTI.
He said the intelligence agencies have taken over this case from the police, and they are currently investigating the matter.
The channel's religious programme host Justice (retd.) Nazir Ahmed Ghazi and Hamza were in the vehicle when it was attacked. Hamza was shifted to a hospital for treatment.
Punjab police on Friday said that "upon receiving information about the incident, the SSP Operations immediately reached the scene and a high alert was imposed in the area. SSP Operations Tauqeer Naeem also met the affected individuals. Thankfully, all present in the vehicle remained safe during the firing."
It further said senior police officers of the Township and Chung, along with a heavy police contingent, were present at the scene.
"Police collected evidence from the site and initiated an investigation. Efforts to arrest the suspects are underway using CCTV footage and geo-fencing techniques. Search and sweep operations are being conducted at various locations, with scrutiny of suspicious individuals ongoing," police said.
It added that those involved in the incident will be traced and arrested soon.
The police sources said that Hamza has been shifted to his residence in Jauhar Town, Lahore, where police and agency personnel met him.
The leadership of the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML), a political front of Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed's banned Jamat-ud-Dawah (JuD), including Hafiz Saeed's son Hafiz Talha Saeed, also called on him.
TV host retired Justice Ghazi, who remained unhurt in the attack, remained a legal counsel for Hafiz Saeed, they said.
The PMML has strongly condemned the attack on Hamza and demanded that those involved in the incident be arrested immediately.
Hamza is regarded as LeT's second most important leader after its chief Hafiz Saeed, who has been in Lahore's Kot Lakhpat Jail since 2019 after getting convicted for several years in terror financing cases.
Hamza has been designated as a terrorist by the US. In the past, he served as the head of LeT's "special campaigns" department.
In 2018, Hamza formed a fundraising group for the LeT following a ban on the JuD and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation by the Pakistani government.
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