The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday directed the Kolkata Police to grant permission to All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) to hold its Shahid Diwas (Martyrs’ Day) rally on July 21 at Cathedral Road near Birla Planetarium, subject to strict conditions to ensure maintenance of law and order, crowd management and smooth vehicular movement.
While disposing of a writ petition filed by AITC Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien, challenging the denial of permission for the proposed political gathering, the single-judge Bench of Justice Saugata Bhattacharya imposed several conditions for the conduct of the event. It directed that the rally should commence at 12:00 pm on July 21 and conclude by 3:30 pm, having participation of not more than 3,000 people.
The Court directed O’Brien and 20 volunteers to furnish their names, contact details and mobile phone numbers to the Joint Commissioner of Police by 4 pm on July 18. The organisers and volunteers were ordered to ensure strict compliance with all directions issued by the Court and coordination with the police authorities during the event.
The Bench ordered the Kolkata Police to deploy adequate security personnel to maintain public order, particularly since three political meetings are scheduled to be held in Kolkata on the same day. It further ordered that one flank of Cathedral Road must remain open throughout the rally to facilitate the uninterrupted movement of vehicular traffic. Both the organisers and the police were directed to ensure compliance with the traffic management arrangement.
The Court clarified that it had not adjudicated upon the merits or legality of the June 30 prohibitory order, which restricted public meetings, rallies and assemblies in several parts of Kolkata from July 2 to August 30. The constitutional and legal challenge to that notification has been kept open for adjudication. A detailed order is awaited.
The petition challenged the June 30 notification issued ahead of the TMC’s annual Martyrs’ Day programme near Esplanade. Appearing for O’Brien, Senior Advocate Kalyan Banerjee submitted that although the Kalighat faction of the TMC was the first to apply for permission to hold the rally, its application remained pending while the authorities granted permission to two other political groups to organise meetings on July 21.
Taking note of the submissions, Justice Bhattacharya observed that the State had already permitted the Congress and the TMC faction led by rebel MLA Ritubrata Banerjee to hold Martyrs’ Day programmes at venues in close proximity around the Esplanade area. The Court questioned the rationale for denying similar permission to the petitioner when two other political groups had already been granted approval within the same vicinity.
However, the Bench declined to permit the rally at Victoria House in the Esplanade area after accepting the State’s submissions regarding logistical, administrative and traffic-related constraints at the proposed venue. Instead, it accepted an alternative proposal to hold the rally at Cathedral Road near Birla Planetarium.
Appearing for the State, Advocate General Surojit Nath Mitra opposed even the alternative venue, expressing apprehensions regarding crowd management and public safety on the ground that the area houses educational institutions and a hospital and may not be suitable for accommodating a large gathering. While recording the State’s objections, the Court nevertheless directed the Kolkata Police to grant permission for the rally at the alternative venue, subject to the conditions imposed to ensure compliance with public safety, law and order, and traffic regulation requirements.
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