The 2018 order, passed by an earlier division bench of justice Jyotirmoy Bhattacharya and justice Arijit Banerjee, had laid down restrictions on political rallies in Kolkata to prevent disruption to traffic and public movement. It had specified that no political gathering should completely block key junctions in the city and that part of the road must remain open for pedestrians and vehicles.
The earlier bench had also stressed that ambulances and other emergency services must be allowed free passage and, where necessary, traffic should be diverted through alternative routes. It had further directed the police to publicise diversion plans in advance and warned that legal action would follow in cases involving vandalism, excessive noise or violence during political events.
The present petition claims that these directions were ignored during the Trinamool Congressโ Martyrsโ Day rally on 21 July last year, particularly at Esplanade in central Kolkata, where an important junction was allegedly fully blocked, causing major inconvenience to the public.
The matter will now come up for further hearing after the affidavits are filed.
With IANS inputs
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