In what was a reversal of the decision of the Taluk Magistrate and Tahsildar of Chandgad, the district administration of Kolhapur gave the green signal late on Thursday night for screening the controversial Marathi feature film, Marathi Tigers, in Shinoli on Friday, even as the film was released all over Maharashtra the same day.
The Tahsildar had denied permission to the manager of the makeshift theatre or touring theatre to screen the film in view of apprehensions of possible law and order problem in the boundary areas.
A large number of activists of Maharashtra Ekikaran Samithi and Shiv Sena, sporting saffron flags symbolising Marathi pride from Belagavi, rushed to Shinoli to watch the film.
A poster with photographs of martyrs who were killed in police firing in incidents related to boundary dispute was also put up at the cinema.
The Karnataka police had deployed personnel along the Belagavi-Shinoli Road till the State boundary near Bachi as a precautionary measure. Similarly, the police personnel were deployed to ensure maintenance of peace and harmony.
With the theatre owners in Belagavi declining to screen the film as the district administration had cautioned them that they would be held responsible if the screening of the film sparked any violence and created law and order problem, a tent was put up on the outskirts of Shinoli, situated on the other side of the Karnataka boundary, around 15 km from Belagavi city. However, the film-makers and the hero, Amol Kolhe, took up the issue with the Maharashtra government, following which the Kolhapur district administration granted permission for one show a day.
However, Dr. Kolhe, who inaugurated the makeshift theatre, expressed the confidence that the government would extend the slots for screening the film.
