AKHIL BHARATHIYA PARISHAD Vs. COMMISSIONER OF POLICE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The prayer sought for in the present writ petition is to quash the order passed by the second respondent in C. No. 22/ 8AC/ Camp/ MC/2025 dtd. 4/2/2025 and direct the respondent to provide appropriate permission to the petitioner organization to conduct procession starting at Mannar Thirumalai Nayakkar College at 4 p.m., on 8/2/2025 and the procession ending at roundana of Pallanganatham, Madurai at about 5 PM and conduct the public meeting

(2.) The learned counsel appearing for the petitioner would submit that the petitioner is Treasurer of Akhil Bharathiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) South Tamil Nadu. The Akhil Bharathiya Vidyarthi Parishad founded in the year 1949 to conduct more student leader, skill development, medical camp, students wing activities, public meeting, rally and carrier guidance program through all over India. Now the organization ABVP has decided to conduct State Conference in south Tamil Nadu from 7/2/205 to 9/2/2025 at Madurai. The students lecturers professor, state office bearres and social activist will participate and leading the above said conference. More than 300 students will participate from various district and said procession will start from Mannar Thirumalai Nayakkar College at 4.00 pm., on 8/2/2025 and will end up at roundana of Pallanganatham at about 5.00 pm., The public meeting will be conducted in the end of procession .

(3.) The learned Additional Advocate General appearing for the respondents would submit that the writ petition is not maintainable. The petitioner has submitted petition to grant permission for the processsion from Mannar Thirumalai Nayakkar College at 4.00 pm., on 8/2/2025 and will end up at roundana of Pallanganatham at about 5.00 pm. In the representation dtd. 22/1/2025 they mentioned that the procession will start at 2.30 pm. and end at 5.00 p.m, and there will be a public meeting , therefore there are two different stand taken by the petitioner. The representation of the second respondent was received only 29/1/2025 and the same was considered and rejected on 4/2/2025. In the proposed route that is from Mannar Thirumalai Nayakkar College to roundana of Pallanganatham is 40 feet road and not permitted for any kind of procession and in between that there are two railway crossings and road works for extension is being carried out and there is also center median and therefore the said route will create heavy traffic congestion since the particular route is only entering the Madurai to Tirunelveli and there are many schools and colleges nearby and hence the proposed route is not feasible to conduct rally. More over, the District Collector, Madurai, through proceedings dtd. 29/11/2024 had earmarked places for conducting public agitation, rallies, protest, dharna and procession. As per the proceedings the route asked by the petitioner is not a permitted place 3.1. Already one P.Sarathy Saravanan has filed a W.P(MD)No. 31294 of 2024 seeking permission to hold hunger strike on 9/2/2025 in the Pallanganatham roundana and this Court vide order dtd. 2/1/2025 has allowed the writ petition hence prior arranged have to be made on 8/2/2025 for the next day dharna at the permitted location, so the petitioner organization cannot be permitted on 8/2/2025 to conduct public meeting in the same location in the Pallanganatham roundana. The petitioner has every right to assemble and demonstrates and can conduct rallies but the petitioner cannot claims specified location for conducting the same. Though the petitioner has right under the Constitution of India it is subject to reasonable restrictions. Further the respondent is ready to grant permission to the petitioner for conducting rally in the alternative places one from Raja Muthiah Mandram to Gandhi Museum and other from Tamukkam Junction to Gandhi Museum. Therefore the present petition is liable to be dismissed. Further the learned Additional Advocate General also produced the photocopies to show the road extension work in the proposed route.