![[Post-Poll Violence] Calcutta HC Seeks Alternative Venue for Suvendu Adhikari's Planned Dharna Outside Raj Bhavan](https://i0.wp.com/lawchakra.in/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/image-8-1.png?fit=820%2C547&ssl=1)
Today, On 19th June, Suvendu Adhikari’s plan to hold a dharna outside Raj Bhavan has been challenged by the Calcutta High Court, which suggested an alternative venue for the protest. The court’s intervention aims to balance the right to protest with maintaining public order.
Calcutta: The Calcutta High Court, on Wednesday asked BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari‘s lawyer to suggest an alternative location to stage a demonstration on alleged post-poll violence in West Bengal, instead of the initially planned protest outside the Raj Bhavan.
Adhikari’s counsel argued that the ruling party had held a sit-in at the Raj Bhavan for five days in October 2023, despite the area being under prohibitory orders on gatherings under Section 144 of the CrPC.
However, the court, represented by Justice Amrita Sinha, directed the petitioner’s lawyer to propose an alternative venue for the demonstration by the next hearing date on June 21.
Read Also: Calcutta High Court Approves Suvendu Adhikari’s Rally in West Bengal
Furthermore, the court instructed the West Bengal Advocate General to determine whether any action had been taken against those who allegedly violated the prohibitory orders during the previous year’s demonstration outside the Raj Bhavan.
Adhikari’s counsel, Billwadal Bhattacharya, informed the court that his request to Kolkata Police for permission to hold a demonstration outside the Raj Bhavan, protesting the alleged post-poll violence against opposition party workers, denied for administrative reasons.
When questioned by the judge on why the protest needed to be staged in front of the Raj Bhavan instead of an alternate location, Bhattacharya explained that the intended venue chosen to convey a message of unwavering belief in the Constitution, despite the alleged atrocities committed against opposition members.
The court noted that the police had suggested the Y-channel near the Raj Bhavan as a potential alternative venue for the demonstration.
Advocate General Kishore Dutta, representing the West Bengal government, reiterated that the intended location is under prohibitory orders, and gatherings of five or more people cannot be permitted there under Section 144 of the CrPC.
The ruling Trinamool Congress, under the leadership of the party’s national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, organized a sit-in protest outside the Raj Bhavan. They demonstrating against the alleged withholding of West Bengal’s MGNREGA dues by the central government. Bhattacharya asserted that similar prohibitory orders disregarded during that demonstration.
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