A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court on November 5 asked the central agency to tender its say by November 6 on an application made by one of the blast accused who wants a stay on the release of Match Fixing – The Nation At Stake until the judgement in the case is delivered. The film is allegedly based on ‘saffron terrorism’ and the 2008 Malegaon bomb blasts and is scheduled for release on November 15. A screening of the film’s trailer was done before the special NIA judge, A.K. Lahoti, on November 5.
With the trial in its last stages, accused Sameer Sharad Kulkarni in his plea said that the film should be banned and, in the interim, its release should be stayed as it flouts orders of the special court not to make any comments or interactions with the media, pending trial. Kulkarni also claimed that the film would raise questions over the fairness of the trial and impact the security of the accused.
The case was kept on November 5 for a say of the NIA which is prosecuting the case. The judge then posted it for November 6.
The application states that the film is based on a subject related to the Malegaon bomb blasts case, and the trial is not yet over, so the release of the film should be stopped by the court. Sameer Kulkarni also took objection to the film’s title.