Film Certification Appellate Tribunal

The Film Certificate Appellate Tribunal (FCAT) was established in 1991 (Bhowmik 2002). FCAT is constituted under the Cinematograph Act 1952 to hear appeals made by applicants for film certificates with respect to orders made by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). Such an appeal would typically follow a film being reviewed for a second time by a CBFC revising committee. FCAT is located in Delhi and is typically headed by a retired Supreme Court judge. An appeal against a decision made by FCAT can be made to the head of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting or through the legal system (Mehta 2011). – Liam Grealy

Further reading:
– Bhowmik, S. (2002). Politics of film censorship: Limits of tolerance. Economics and Political Weekly, 37(35), 3574-3577.
– Mehta, M. (2011). Censorship and sexuality in Bombay cinema. Austin: University of Texas Press.