Samajwadi Party seeks FIR against `Azaan` crew

Mumbai: Bollywood flick `Azaan` has courted controversy before its release next week with the Samajwadi Party Saturday saying its title is a deliberate attempt to hurt the sentiments of Muslims and sought to file an FIR.

In a written complaint to the Nirmal Nagar police station, the party`s city vice president Farooq Ghoshi stated, "An FIR should be registered against director Prashant Chadha, producer M R Shahjahan, hero Sachin Joshi and heroine Candice Boucher under the IPC section 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings or any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs). "Aazaan is Islamic invitation to prayers. It is a sacred word, which should not have been used for film`s title that has been categorised as `A` grade cinema by Censor Board and the film`s story talks of terrorism. This is hurting the sentiments of Muslim community." "We have taken note of the complaint and are seeking a legal opinion to ascertain whether an FIR could be registered against them or not," P S Bagade, senior inspector at the police station, told reporters. The action thriller which is scheduled to hit the screens on October 14, is the debut movie of actor Sachin Joshi with South African actress Boucher playing the second lead. Recently, social organisations Raza Academy and Anjuman Barkaat-e-Raza members protested at Bhendi Bazaar area of the city against the usage of the word `Azaan` in the film`s title. PTI