While the first special leave petition arises out of an order passed by the Division Bench of the Madras High Court in an intra- court appeal challenging an order passed by the learned Judge in a contempt petition, the other special leave petitions arise out of the order passed substantially in a writ petition and in a review petition. The contention of the writ petitioners was that they wanted to hold the procession on 02.10.2022, but that their applications for permission to hold the Route March were not considered by the appropriate authorities; (ii) The batch of writ petitions were disposed of by a learned Judge of the Madras High Court, by an order dated 22.09.2022, with certain directions; (iii) The State filed a batch of applications for review.
09.10.2022, 16.10.2022, 06.11.2022 and 13.11.2022 and the learned Senior Counsel appearing for the first respondent submitted that except Gandhi Jayanthi on 02.10.2022, they will consider the same representations of the respective petitioners seeking permission to conduct procession and to conduct public meetings on any other date.
Registry is directed to list the matter along with all the connected numbered contempt petitions subsequently on 31.10.2022” (vi) Pursuant to the aforesaid order dated 30.09.2022, the Director General of Police issued a memorandum dated 29.10.2022 instructing Commissioners/Superintendents of Police of the Districts to pass necessary orders on the representations of the organisers; (vii) In the light of the memorandum issued by The Director General of Police on 29.10.2022, the learned Judge before whom the contempt petitions came up on 31.10.2022, passed an order to the following effect:- “The learned Senior Counsel appearing for the petitioner produced the order passed by the second respondent viz., the Director General of Police, dated 29.10.2022, thereby directing all the Commissioner of Police/Superintendent of Police, to pass order on the applications made by the respective petitioners in accordance with the order passed by this Court dated 22.09.2022 in W.P.No.24540 of 2022 etc., batch.
(viii) On 02.11.2022, the Staff Officer in the Office of the Director General of Police filed a status report claiming that in view of certain developments that took place after a cylinder blast in Coimbatore City on 23.10.2022, a fresh assessment of the local situation had to be made by the Commissioners/Superintendents of Police.
Today when the matters are taken up for hearing, the learned State Public Prosecutor appearing for the petitioners submitted that out of 50 places, in three places, the respective respondents were granted permission to conduct procession and public meeting on 06.11.2022. (xi) But in the batch of contempt petitions, the learned Judge passed an order adjourning the contempt petitions to 04.11.2022, for passing appropriate orders after perusing the Intelligence Report produced by the State in a sealed cover; (xii) On 04.11.2022 the learned Judge passed final orders in the contempt petitions, virtually modifying the original order passed on 22.09.2022. It is made clear that while proceeding to conduct procession and public meeting, the participants shall go by walk or by their respective vehicles without causing any hindrance to the general public and traffic.
Cone Speakers should not be used at any cost.
Accordingly, the appellants are directed to approach the State authorities with three different dates of their choice for the purpose of holding the route-march/peaceful procession and the State authorities are directed to grant permission to the appellants on one of the chosen dates out of the three. The State on the other hand has to take adequate safety measures and make traffic arrangements to ensure that the procession and the meeting shall go on peacefully.” (xiv)
Challenging the order of the Division Bench passed in the intra-court appeals arising out of the order passed in the contempt petitions, the Secretary to Government, Home Department, the Director General of Police, the Commissioner of Police and the Inspector of Police first came up with a special leave petition in Special Leave Petition (C) No.4163 of 2023. After having disposed of the batch of main writ petitions by a final order dated 22.09.2022 in a particular manner and after having dismissed the batch of review applications on 02.11.2022, the learned Judge could not have modified his original order dated 22.09.2022 in a batch of contempt petitions on 04.11.2022. Coming to the other special leave petitions, the same arise out of the original order passed by the learned Judge on 22.09.2022 in the batch of writ petitions and the order dated 02.11.2022 passed in the batch of review applications.
The procession shall proceed in any orderly manner along the sanctioned route keeping to the left and shall not halt on the way or cause impediment to the normal flow of traffic.
The organizer(s) of procession/rally shall be responsible for ensuring that the route permitted to them by the Police Authorities is strictly followed. Cone Speakers should not be used at any cost. As rightly contended by all the learned senior counsel on the side of the respondent, the main objection raised by the State before the High Court was that after the imposition of a ban order on another organization, law and order problems cropped up in certain places and that the same led to several cases being registered. Hence all the special leave petitions are liable to be dismissed.
Case Title: K. PHANINDRA REDDY, I.A.S. Vs. G. SUBRAMANIAN (2023 INSC 359)
Case Number: SLP(C) No.-004163 / 2023
