NEW DELHI: Bringing much needed respite to filmmakers, the directive to ban 34 cuss words was nixed after a stormy seven-hour meeting of the Censor Board on Monday. Members of the Central Board of Film Certification ( CBFC ) argued that chairman Pahlaj Nihalani had exceeded his brief and the order was outside the purview of the board.Nihalani had recently issued directions that films with double meaning words, profanities (34 were listed out), those glorifying bloodshed or violence against women would not get certification. The order, sent to all regional officers, was met with uproar by filmmakers and board members themselves who said they had not been consulted.Sources said the members pointed out to Nihalani and board officials that CBFC only had recommendatory powers. “Legally, the board has powers to recommend change in rules or law. But the recommendations must be put before the ministry. This was not done. Neither the board members nor the ministry was kept in the loop,’’ a member said.Another member said the board’s responsibility was to certify films rather than ban them and place curbs on the filmmaking process.Filmmaker Ashoke Pandit, who spearheaded the opposition against the directive, said, “The unilateral decision was in bad taste. After discussions, it was unanimously decided that there should be a debate on the issue.’’He had earlier described the order as a “fatwa’’ and tweeted that he did not endorse the list nor was he consulted. “Does the CBFC chairperson endorse other bad words which are not in this list and can be used in films? This is against the freedom and creative liberty of a filmmaker. If I am portraying the character of Dawood in my film, he will use the language as per his character and not what a saint would use,” he had said.His colleague Chandraprakash Diwedi on Monday brought with him modern and classical books replete with profanities that had won literature awards like the Sahitya Akademi prize to make the point that art should not be looked at in a narrow sense.The meeting lasted from 10 am to 5 pm but sources said much before the meeting, information and broadcasting (I&B) ministry had made its disapproval clear to Nihalani and noted that such orders could not be issued unilaterally.Nihalani and CBFC CEO Shravan Kumar were unavailable for comment despite repeated attempts.TOI had earlier reported how Union minister Babul Supriyo and filmmaker Anurag Kashyap had met junior I&B minister Rajyavardhan Rathore to seek reprieve.