Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling is suing a community group in India after it recreated the fictional Hogwarts School for a festival.

Rowling and Warner Brothers - which controls the rights to the boy wizard franchise in India - have mounted a legal battle against the Kolkata organization, seeking two million rupees ($50,000; #25,000) in damages for breach of copyright.

The group is alleged to have erected the 1.2 million Indian rupees ($30,000; #15,000) structure in the shape of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for the four-day Hindu festival of Goddess Durga, celebrating the victory of good over evil.

Santanu Biswas, secretary of FD Block Puja Committee of Salt Lake - the group at the centre of the allegations - insists they did not realize they had contravened any copyrights, but will destroy the structure if necessary.

He says, "We had no clue that we had to seek permission from the author. Our lawyer in Delhi will appear before the court tomorrow to explain our stand.

"We did not have any commercial motive behind this. The immense popularity of Harry Potter prompted us to choose this as a theme to get more footfalls for our pandals (temporary structures for the festival)."

"If they are still not satisfied, we will dismantle the pandal."

The Durja Puja festival - the biggest Hindu festeival in east India - is set to begin on 17 October (07).

 

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