MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court has asked for an undertaking from broadcasters and cable service providers declaring that they will only be transmitting U and U/A films.

The High Court bench, headed by Justice Lodha, also clarified that its 23 August order against the broadcast of adult movies did not restrain channels and cable service providers from airing movies with U and U/A certificates.

The bench gave the clarification in response to an application made by a cable subscriber, the Press Trust of India news service reported.

The court also directed cable service providers to remove the scrolls many of them were carrying which said movie channels were off the air because of the High Court order. The court termed such scrolls as a misinterpretation of its original ruling.

The High Court said it had not stopped the channels which were currently off air in Mumbai from operating but had only restrained them from showing adult content.

The nine channels --- Hindi and English movie channels (Zee Cinema, Star Movies, HBO, Filmy, Star Gold, AXN and Max), and Hindi entertainment channels Star One and Sahara One --- had originally been blacked out after the Mumbai police confiscated the decoders of major cable networks and beaming equipment of channels on the charge that they had violated the law by telecasting uncertified movies. This followed orders from the Bombay High Court that channels showing adult movie content should be taken off air.

When the matter of the seized decoders was brought up, the bench told the broadcasters to arrange for replacements. Multi-system operators (MSOs) like Hathway and In Cable (who hold sizeable chunk of connections in Mumbai) as well as Zee Group controlled Siticable were among those that had their equipment confiscated in the police raids.

The court's ban order on adult movies had come on a PIL filed by a Mumbai college professor.