After a group of people were hounded and heckled for allegedly sitting down during the national anthem at a movie theatre in Bengaluru, the police have now registered an FIR against the moviegoers.

The group of unknown persons were charged under Section 3 of the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971. "We don't know who they are but we have registered an FIR and we are asking PVR to hand over CCTV footage to identify these people. We have also asked for contact numbers of the accused persons," Sadananda M, police inspector at Subramanyanagar police station told TNM. A suo motu case was registered against a group of unknown persons in connection with the incident.

On October 23, a group of four people — two men and two women — were bullied on camera at PVR Orion Mall in Bengaluru during an interval for the Tamil movie Asuran. Sandalwood actor Arun Gowda and a few others shouted at the four people and called them "Pakistani terrorists" as they allegedly did not stand when the national anthem was played. “Not able to spare 52 seconds for the country, but you have the audacity to sit here and watch a three-hour movie? Are you Pakistani terrorists?”, a man is heard saying in a video of the incident, which was shared widely.

However, the video of the argument was shot during the interval and not when the national anthem was being played. Police officials said that they are trying to examine if the national anthem was dishonoured in any way.

Section 3 of the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, states that those who “intentionally prevent the singing of Jana Gana Mana or cause disturbances to any assembly engaged in such singing” shall be punished with jail term extended upto three years.

In November 2016, the Supreme Court had made it mandatory for all cinema halls to play the national anthem before the screening. In January 2018, the apex court modified the order and made it optional for cinema halls to play the national anthem before every show. However, if a cinema hall chooses to play the national anthem, people could stand up to show respect.

“Why should you presume that not singing the national anthem in a theatre makes a person anti-national?” Justice Chandrachud, who was a part of the two-judge bench, had asked while overturning the earlier order.