HC sets aside condition requiring vehicle pass for participants coming to Lord Murugan devotees conference

The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Friday set aside the condition requiring vehicle pass for participants to attend Muruga Bakthargalin Aanmeega Maanadu to be held in Madurai on June 22.

The court was hearing an appeal preferred by M. Arasupandi of Madurai, zonal secretary of Hindu Munnani, who challenged the condition requiring vehicle pass for participants to attend the event.

Allowing the appeal, a Division Bench of Justices G.R. Swaminathan and K. Rajasekar observed that the condition imposed by the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Anna Nagar range, Madurai, lacked jurisdiction.

The Assistant Commissioner could not have issued a blanket prohibitory order restraining the entry of vehicles into Madurai city without vehicle pass for the conference participants.

“We fail to understand as to how such a condition could have been imposed by the Assistant Commissioner in the first place. An Assistant Commissioner can have jurisdiction and sway only over the territorial limits and not over the entire Madurai city”, the court observed.

Right to movement throughout India is guaranteed to all citizens under Article 19(1)(d) of the Constitution. It is open to any citizen to enter Madurai city in his/her vehicle and such a right cannot be interfered with by an Assistant Commissioner of Police.

“We are a republican democracy. Just as ease of doing business is important, the ease of participation in democratic gatherings is equally vital. The authorities ought not to come in the way of the citizens exercising their democratic right”, the court observed.

The court observed that if the objective of the police is to gather details and particulars of the vehicles entering the area where the event is to be held, it can be easily achieved by employing a simple technology such as scanning the license plates of vehicles. To address the concerns expressed by authorities, the appellant had undertaken that participants who come in personal or hired vehicles would deposit photostat copies of RC book, insurance certificate and driving licence in the police booths maintained by Madurai City Police at the earmarked parking places. The organisers assured the court that arrangements had been made so that there would be no stampede which was witnessed in Bengaluru, Delhi and other places recently.