Surat: The Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) has served a notice to Cinepolis multiplex located in Adajan asking it remove food counters and stalls inside the lobby on the third floor within seven days, falling which strict action will be taken. The action has come after Society For Citizen Centric Governance (SCCG) president Arpit Shukla filed a complaint with the west zone of SMC demanding removal of illegal food stalls at Cinepolis.SMC west zone executive engineer Jayesh Solanki served a notice to Cinepolis theatre for flouting building plan norms and setting up food stalls illegally in the theatre lobby, there by obstructing the exit of the people during any emergency.Few days ago a social activist had registered a police complaint against the Cinepolis multiplex ‘for preventing him and his family members from carrying water bottles and outside food inside the hall.’A social activist Sanjay Ezhawa was stopped from carrying water bottles and outside food inside the cinema hall by the management of Cinepolis multiplex when he had gone to watch a movie with his family on March 31.SCCG has taken up the campaign ‘My Food, My Movie’ to exhort moviegoers to carry their own food and water bottles inside the theatre as the multiplex owners were illegally restraining visitors from carrying outside food, so that they could earn big profits from their own restaurants and cafeterias.SCCG president Arpit Shukla told TOI, “We are fighting against multiplex owners on two fronts — one is for removal of illegal food stalls and another to allow people to carry food and water inside the theatre. Gujarat Cinemas (Regulation) Act does not ban people from carrying food. Shukla added, “We appreciate the action taken by the civic body. Now, the Cinepolis management will have to remove the food stalls at the earliest."“We want the city police to take action against the multiplex for wrongful restraint under the Indian Penal Code 339. There is no law where cinema halls could prevent viewers from carrying outside food. Recently, Bombay high court directed Maharashtra government to frame guidelines on allowing people to carry food inside theatres and multiplexes,” Shukla added.

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