‘The Kerala Story’ Would Stay Tax-Free In Madhya Pradesh, Says Narottam Mishra

Narottam Mishra, the state’s home minister and government spokesman, said on Thursday that the movie “was tax-free and will remain tax-free in the state” in response to a controversy surrounding the Congress’ assertion that the Madhya Pradesh government had revoked the tax exemption for the film “The Kerala Story.”

“There is no ambiguity regarding the matter. I kindly ask all owners of movie theatres to avoid confusion. The movie “The Kerala Story” was produced tax-free and will continue to be so in Madhya Pradesh. As Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had announced it (making the film tax-free), they shouldn’t believe in any viral or fake orders, Mishra told reporters.

The Madhya Pradesh Congress on Wednesday claimed the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government had rolled back its decision to give tax-free status to the controversial Bollywood film ‘The Kerala Story’ in the state.

However, Central Circuit Cine Association (CCCA) director O P Goyal told PTI that no such order (about withdrawal of tax-free status) has been received by cinema hall owners in the state. He said that tickets for the film are being issued without charging entertainment tax on them.

CCCA is the sole representative of about 2,000 film distributors and exhibitors in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, MP, and Rajasthan.

The movie, which depicts how women from Kerala were forced to convert to Islam and recruited by the terror group Islamic State (IS), was declared tax-free by the Madhya Pradesh government four days ago.

State Congress media cell chairman KK Mishra said as per rules, films with an ‘A’ certificate from the Censor Board cannot be exempted from entertainment tax. This was the reason why the state government has withdrawn tax exemption to ‘The Kerala Story’, he claimed.

Meanwhile, a report from Indore said Congress Rajya Sabha MP Vivek Tankha has targeted the chief minister for exempting the film with an ‘A’ certificate from entertainment tax in Madhya Pradesh.

‘The Kerala Story’, directed by Sudipto Sen and produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah, has received an ‘A’ certificate from the Central Board of Film Certification. This means the film can be watched by “Adults Only.”

The film has many violent and objectionable scenes, Tankha told reporters in Indore on Wednesday night. “How can you (the state government) give entertainment tax exemption to a film with an ‘A’ certificate and you are inviting children to watch it (in theatres),” he asked.

He said that Chouhan may not have seen the film and unknowingly made it tax-free.

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