Justice Amarjeet Singh set the date after hearing submissions by the parties involved.

Lawyer N Surendran representing the movie’s director, Khairi Anwar Jailani, and producer, Tan Meng Kheng, submitted that the ban was irrational and unlawful as it breached his clients’ right to freedom of expression under Article 10 of the Federal Constitution.

“Hence, we are asking this court to revoke the ban and declare the Film Censorship Act unconstitutional,” he said, adding that the movie was about a schoolgirl, who developed doubts about life.

Meanwhile, senior federal counsel Nur Hafizza Azizan, representing the home ministry and the government, as respondents, argued that there were several scenes in the movie that contradicted Islamic beliefs and teaching.

“A total of 30 police reports about the movie have been lodged all over the country,” she added.

On Jan 31, the same judge granted leave to the director and producer to initiate a judicial review to challenge the government’s ban.

In their December 2023 application, Khairi Anwar, 32, and Tan, 37, claimed that the government’s decision to ban the movie was irrational and in breach of the freedom of expression enshrined in the Federal Constitution.

They further claimed that the decision also affected their income because the movie could not be screened or distributed anywhere in the country.

The home ministry, through the Film Censorship (Prohibition) Order 2023 dated Aug 21, 2023, signed by minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, banned the screening and publicity of Mentega Terbang.

The movie, which was also shown on a video-streaming platform, sparked public outrage for allegedly portraying scenes of conflicting religious beliefs and themes.

In January, Khairi Anwar and Tan pleaded not guilty in the magistrates’ court here to a charge of wounding the religious feelings of others through the movie.