India, July 29 -- The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to stall the release of an animated movie on Lord Jagannath, saying courts cannot sit in judgment over works of art.

A bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and R Mahadevan dismissed an application by Shree Jagannath Temple Administration, which manages Puri's Jagannath temple, against the film's release. "We have already passed an order [on July 17] allowing the film's release. If we pass an order, all televised series on Ramayana and Mahabharata will stop," the bench said.

Odisha's advocate general, Pitamber Acharya, who represented the temple administration, said the movie is for children and creates a distorted image of the deity. "The deity is not any Doraemon or Spiderman. Lord Ja...