India, June 17 -- The Supreme Court on Tuesday said no one can prevent the release of a film that has received certification from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), and questioned why 'Thug Life,' a Tamil feature film starring Kamal Haasan, was not being screened in Karnataka.

A bench of justices Ujjal Bhuyyan and Manmohan also questioned the Karnataka high court's insistence on June 3 that Haasan apologise to the people of the state for his comments made comparing the Tamil and Kannada languages at a public event.

The top court said the high court had no business to seek an apology from Haasan.

"We can't allow mobs and vigilante groups to take over the streets. The rule of law must prevail. We can't allow this to happen. ...