SC issues notice to Bengal govt

State authorities have no right to prohibit the democratic rally, but they have every right to make regulations in aid of the right of the same with valid reasons

BJP PETITION

NEWDELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued a notice to the West Bengal government on a petition by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) seeking permission to take out a ‘rath yatra’ in the state.

A bench of justices LN Rao and Sanjay Kishan Kaul asked the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government to respond to the petition challenging the December 21 order of the Calcutta high court division bench that set aside its single-judge bench order allowing the saffron party to hold the rallies. The state government has maintained that allowing the rally could invite law and order problems.

The BJP also offered to submit a revised plan for its ‘Save Democracy Rally’ by Tuesday evening. The bench posted the matter for further hearing to January 15, while asking the state to give its view on the new schedule the party has worked out on account of the yatra getting delayed due to pending litigation.

The BJP’S West Bengal unit had approached the apex court seeking permission to take out the rally, which would cover 42 parliamentary constituencies in the state ahead of general elections later this year.

As per the original schedule, BJP president Amit Shah was to launch the yatra from Cooch Behar on December 7, Kakdwip in South 24 Parganas on December 9 and from Tarapith temple in Birbhum on December 14.

The BJP told the apex court that to hold a peaceful rally is part of its fundamental right and that it cannot be withheld. “The right of the petitioner to hold public meeting on a public street or public place qis protected under the Constitution of India and therefore, the state authorities have no right to prohibit the democratic rally, but they have every right to make regulations in aid of the right of the same with valid reasons,” the BJP said in its petition.