NEW DELHI — The Supreme Court of India has quashed all criminal proceedings against acclaimed filmmaker Sujoy Ghosh in a long-standing copyright infringement case involving his 2016 film, Kahaani 2: Durga Rani Singh. The ruling, delivered on March 20, 2026, brings an end to nearly a decade of litigation stemming from allegations that the film’s script was plagiarized.
The Case Background
The dispute began when a complainant, Umesh Prasad Mehta, filed a case in Hazaribagh, Jharkhand, alleging that Ghosh had copied his script titled Sabak. Mehta claimed he had shared the material with the director in 2015, leading a Chief Judicial Magistrate to issue summons against Ghosh in 2018 under Section 63 of the Copyright Act.
The Supreme Court’s Findings
A Bench of Justices PS Narasimha and Alok Aradhe set aside the Jharkhand High Court’s earlier refusal to intervene, citing a “non-application of mind” by the lower courts. Key points from the judgment include:
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Lack of Evidence: The Court noted the complaint contained only “bald and unsubstantiated allegations” without identifying any specific similarities between the script and the film.
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Timeline Discrepancy: Critically, evidence showed that Ghosh’s script for Kahaani 2 was registered years before the complainant’s script even existed, making the allegation of infringement “untenable.”
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Concealment of Facts: The Bench observed that the complainant had hidden a crucial finding from the Screen Writers Association (SWA), which had already investigated and concluded there was no similarity between the two works.
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Abuse of Process: The Court reiterated that criminal proceedings should not be used as a tool for “frivolous or malicious” litigation.
Industry Impact
Represented by Senior Advocate Siddhartha Dave, Ghosh’s victory is seen as a significant precedent for the Indian film industry. Legal experts suggest the ruling reinforces the need for magistrates to scrutinize “plagiarism” complaints more rigorously before issuing criminal summons, protecting creators from predatory litigation.
