The Calcutta High Court refused permission for a TMC student wing rally in solidarity with the Jantar Mantar protesters, holding the situation was not normal and could escalate tension.
The Calcutta High Court declined to permit a rally proposed by the student wing of the Trinamool Congress in solidarity with the demonstrators who faced police action at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, holding that the prevailing situation was not normal enough to allow such a gathering .
At a special hearing convened, Justice Saugata Bhattacharya observed that the situation was not absolutely normal, and that permitting the rally in these circumstances carried the risk of aggravating tensions.
Explaining why it was not inclined to allow a fresh, separate rally at this juncture, the Bench remarked,
“If this rally will lead to any untoward incident, then this Court will be held responsible. Student unrest is spreading through major cities including our city. There was huge gathering and that is why this court was asking Mr Nag [counsel for petitioner] that why they did not join yesterday. Separate rally at this stage, Court finds, is not permissible to be conducted in view of the current scenario.”
Observing that it would not be workable to permit rallies by different political organisations in the present climate, the judge declined the request, adding,
“At this stage, Court will not permit. Sorry!”
The petition was moved by Priyanka Adhikary, President of the Trinamool Chhatra Parishad, the student wing of the All India Trinamool Congress. She challenged the refusal of the police to permit the rally, which the students had proposed to hold on Saturday itself.
An application seeking permission had been made to the police on July 23. Counsel for the petitioner submitted that the police had initially granted permission for the rally, only to withdraw it subsequently.
Appearing for the State, Advocate General Surajit Nath Mitra opposed the plea, submitting that the administration was obliged to ensure that there was no breach of peace and tranquility.
In its order, the Court proceeded on the settled premise that the right to freedom of speech and the right to peaceful assembly are not absolute, but are subject to reasonable restrictions. It held that a balance had to be struck between the entitlement of citizens to hold a rally and the responsibility of the administration to regulate such events in the interest of all.
Taking into account that student protests were unfolding across the country, the Court concluded that permitting the rally was not feasible, as doing so “may escalate tension, leading to breach of corresponding rights of citizens of Kolkata.”
Declining to disturb the decision communicated by the police, the Court held,
“This Court is not inclined to interfere with the e-mail communication … issued on behalf of police authorities,”
And the court dismissed the petition.
The rally was proposed as a gesture of solidarity with the agitation at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, led by the Cockroach Janta Party, which has been demanding the resignation of the Union Education Minister over the alleged leak of the NEET question paper.
That agitation escalated on July 20, when an attempted march to Parliament was met by a heavy police deployment, prompting allegations of a lathi charge and the use of tear gas which the Delhi Police have denied and generating several rounds of litigation before the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court.
The Delhi events have since reverberated well beyond the capital, with the present refusal in Kolkata illustrating how the question of permitting solidarity protests is now being litigated in other States as well.
Case Title: Priyanka Adhikary v. State of West Bengal
