New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday indicated that it would ask the Delhi High Court to consider on an urgent basis a plea challenging restrictions imposed ahead of a proposed protest at Jantar Mantar on Saturday, including the proposed closure of 57 Metro stations and cancellation and rescheduling of trains arriving in the national capital.
A Bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana took note of submissions made by senior advocates Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Gopal Sankaranarayanan regarding the impact of the preventive measures on ordinary citizens.
The matter was mentioned by Sibal, who said the restrictions were affecting the movement of people across Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR), despite the proposed demonstration being a peaceful protest.
“All trains are cancelled, metro stations are closed. You cannot move anywhere. What is happening to my country? This is a peaceful protest,” Sibal submitted.
The senior counsel told the top court that several trains scheduled to arrive at New Delhi and Hazrat Nizamuddin railway stations on October 10 have been cancelled or rescheduled, while the proposed closure of 57 Metro stations would affect millions of commuters.
Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan contended that a peaceful protest could not be a ground for shutting down an entire city, arguing that the preventive measures were disproportionate.
The apex court stressed the need to balance the right of a group of citizens to protest with the rights of other citizens to access essential facilities and public transport.
Justice Bagchi questioned whether the apex court could pass an order without hearing the organisers of the proposed demonstration and sought details about the expected number of participants.
“If we know who the organisers are, we may ask them what number of people they expect to assemble. Then we can regulate that and call upon the government to calibrate its response, rather than taking broad-spectrum measures,” Justice Bagchi observed.
Noting that the organisers of the proposed protest were not directly represented before it, the Supreme Court sought details regarding whether permission for the demonstration had been granted or denied.
Sibal said he would return with a representative of the protest organisers when the matter is taken up at 2 p.m.
The developments come amid heightened security arrangements ahead of the proposed protest by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) at Jantar Mantar, seeking accountability from Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.
The Delhi Police on Friday said permission for the demonstration had been denied, citing the organisers’ alleged failure to comply with legal directions and their undertakings during an earlier protest, besides prevailing law-and-order concerns and traffic regulation requirements.
The police also said Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) was in force in the New Delhi area.
Separately, the Delhi High Court on Friday declined to urgently hear a plea filed by the Indian Youth Congress (IYC) challenging the denial of permission for a protest against the Chief Election Commissioner. The matter was deferred to Monday (October 12).
(IANS)
