SC agreed to take up on Nov 2 the hearing of an application moved by Bollywood starlet and 'companion' of underworld don Abu Salem seeking permission to act in films.
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to take up on November two the hearing of an application moved by Bollywood starlet and 'companion' of underworld don Abu Salem seeking permission to act in films.
A bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan listed the matter for hearing after senior counsel K T S Tulsi, appearing for the actress, requested the court for an early hearing of the plea.
In a criminal miscellaneous application filed through her counsel Rishi Malhotra, Monica had urged the apex court to modify the bail order passed by it on May 17, wherein she was restrained from leaving her permanent residence at Chabbowal village in Punjab's Hoshairpur district.
According to Monica, the restriction imposed on her movements by the court was coming in the way of her acting career as she was getting fresh offers from various film producers, particularly from Hyderabad.
On May 17, the Supreme Court had granted her bail in one of the forgery cases registered against her in Hyderabad while refusing bail in a similar case pending trial in a Bhopal court.
While granting her bail in the Hyderabad case, the court had laid the condition that she could not leave her permanent residence without prior police permission until the case was disposed off.
However, Monica has now approached the apex court claiming that after her release on bail, she has been flooded with offers, especially from Hyderabad and Mumbai, to act in films.
In her petition, the actress said that she was unable to accept the offers owing to the conditions imposed on her movements by the apex court.
"It is not possible for the petitioner (Monica) to practice her profession while remaining in her village and awaiting police permission every time she had to undertake a visit outside," the petition said.
Pleading that she had no independent source of income to sustain herself, the actress said she did not want to depend on her parents or relatives for her livelihood.
Quoting Article 19 of the Constitution, the petitioner said 'right to freedom of trade and profession is fundamental' and hence, she cannot be denied the right to act in films by restricting her stay to a particular village.
Stating that she had not violated any of the bail conditions imposed on her, Monica assured the apex court that she will not contact any of the co-accused persons and abide by all such terms and conditions imposed by it.
She also told the court that if the restrictions were removed, she would be primarily going to stay in Hyderabad since majority of her offers are for Telugu movies. She also offered to give details of her place of residence in the said city.
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