NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has held that past incidents of violence cannot automatically justify blanket prohibitions on traditional religious processions.
The court was responding to a petition challenging Delhi Police’s refusal to grant permission for a Hanuman Jayanti procession in Jahangirpuri scheduled for April 12.
Justice Sachin Datta, who heard the matter, directed the police authorities to reconsider the request and make a timely and reasoned decision.
He observed that while the April 2022 communal clashes in Jahangirpuri were indeed unfortunate, they cannot serve as a permanent deterrent to holding religious events rooted in long-standing practices.
“The authorities are directed to consider the application afresh and take a prompt and appropriate decision,” the court said in its April 9 order.
The court further said that the fact that an untoward incident occurred in 2022 should not, in and of itself, bar religious processions in subsequent years if such events are otherwise customary. Clashes had erupted in Jahangirpuri on 16 April 2022 during a Hanuman Jayanti procession, resulting in injuries to eight police personnel and one civilian.
Since then, the police have denied permission for processions, citing heightened sensitivities and an unpredictable atmosphere in the area.
The petitioner, who claimed to have organised the annual procession since 2010, argued that since 2019, his requests have been repeatedly rejected without sufficient justification. He proposed a scaled-down version of the yatra on a modified route, intended to address law and order concerns.
The High Court, while refusing to overrule the police’s assessment on public safety grounds, underscored the need for senior officers to reassess the proposal and communicate a decision to the petitioner well in advance of the intended date. The court noted that it is the duty of the police authorities to ensure adequate security arrangements.