The Telangana high court on March 4 imposed a cost of Rs. 10 lakh on Nandi Chinni Kumar who sought court interference in the release of Jhund, starring Amitabh Bachchan. The release of the film, based on the life of football coach Akhilesh Paul, was sought to be stayed on the ground that the petitioner had rights over the story.
The high court bench comprising Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Abhinand Kumar Shavali took note of the fact that the petitioner had not disclosed the settlement arrived at before the district court. The bench imposed cost of Rs. 10 lakh on the petitioner, to be paid to the PM’s Relief Fund within 30 days. It added that in case the petitioner failed to do so, the district collector of Hyderabad would collect the same as arrears within 30 days after the expiry of time granted. Accordingly, the case was dismissed.