(1.) The present writ petition is an offshoot of an earlier Order of this Court where it directed the authorities to consider the petitioner's request to hold a meeting by a social organisation named 'Makkal Athikaram', of which he is the Regional Coordinator, was turned down by the authorities.
(2.) Earlier when permission was denied by the authorities, the petitioner moved this Court in W.P(MD) No.18773 of 2018 and that came to be dismissed on 01.10.2018. Challenging the said order, the petitioner preferred an appeal in W.A(MD) No.1638 of 2018, and on 21.12.2018 it was allowed with a direction to the petitioner that he approached the authorities with a fresh request for holding a meeting with further direction to the authorities to consider the same based on certain observations expressed in the Order. Thereafter, the petitioner approached the authorities with a representation dated 31.01.2019, and it came to be rejected by the impugned Order of the second respondent, dated 10.02.2019. This is under challenge now.
(3.) The Order in challenge lists several grounds for rejecting the petitioner's request to hold a meeting. The broad statement that these grounds of rejection makes is that the petitioner's organization has either misused the permission granted earlier, or breached into the domain of other citizens with opposite ideologies and posed threat to public order. There is also an indication that some of the pamphlets issued, and posts made in the social media where the petitioner or his organisation has an account, shows pictures defiling certain religious symbols that are likely to offend the religious sentiments of the members of that religious Order. The impugned Order reflects the anxiety of the authorities that if permission is accorded, it might be misused.