The legal dispute over Trinamool Congress’s proposed rally in Hooghly has reached a division bench of the Calcutta High Court, with the West Bengal government challenging a single-bench order that had permitted the event subject to several conditions.
The development came just hours after Justice Sougata Bhattacharyya granted conditional permission for the rally at Jagannath Dev Snanpindi Maidan in Mahesh, Srirampur, where former chief minister Mamata Banerjee is scheduled to address the gathering.
The state approached the bench of Chief Justice Ravindra V. Ghuge and Justice Tapobrata Chakraborty seeking clarification and modification of a portion of the single-bench order. The matter was listed for hearing on Thursday afternoon.
State raises objection over ownership of ground
Appearing for the state, Additional Advocate General Bilwadal Bhattacharyya told the division bench that the government had no objection to the political meeting itself. The concern, he said, was over the use of the particular ground approved by the single bench.
According to the state's submission, the ground is privately owned. The government questioned what the police could do if the owner declined to allow the venue to be used for a political programme.
The state also argued that the ground is traditionally associated with religious and cultural activities. Its plea before the division bench was that police should not be placed in a position where they might have to compel a private owner to make the property available for a political event.
The government therefore sought either a modification of the order relating to the private property or permission to hold the programme at an alternative location.
The owners of the Mahesh ground also drew the court’s attention to their position. They told the bench that the property is made available for religious and cultural purposes, including events connected with the famous Mahesh Rath festival, but that they were not willing to permit its use for the proposed political programme.
During the hearing, Chief Justice Ghuge stressed that political programmes should be organised without causing inconvenience to the public. “Before holding a political programme, one has to think about ordinary people,” he said, as quoted by Anandabajar Patrika.
The Chief Justice further observed that organisers should choose a venue in a manner that does not create difficulties for residents and asked the parties to consider another location.
Justice Sougata Bhattacharyya had earlier allowed the Kalighat faction of the TMC to hold the meeting at the Mahesh ground on Friday, subject to a series of restrictions.
The programme has been permitted between 1pm and 3pm, with the court capping the gathering at 2,000 people. The single bench also directed the state police to take adequate measures to ensure that there was no untoward incident during the event.
The court made it clear that speakers at the meeting must not make provocative statements that could hurt the religious sentiments of any section of the public.
