Kathmandu Metropolitan City Mayor Balen Shah on Thursday said that he would not abide by the Patan High Court’s order not to ban the screening of Indian movies in the halls of Kathmandu. Earlier this afternoon, the court had issued a short-term interim order directing the Kathmandu metropolis not to stall the screening of any movies approved by the Censor Board including the Indian films. Shortly after the court’s order, Mayor Shah through Facebook said that he would not allow Indian movies to be screened in the halls of Kathmandu, but would be ready to face any kind of punishment.

He also accused the court and Nepal government of being the slaves of India.

“I am not ready to comply with the law or court when it comes to the sovereignty and independence of the country,” he said. Kathmandu Metropolitan City Mayor Balen Shah had banned the screening of Indian movies from Monday after his call to remove a portion of the movie ‘Adipurush’ which shows that Janaki is the Indian daughter, went unheeded. Later, the Nepal Film Association moved the court against the decision of Mayor Shah.