CHENNAI: The RSS has moved the Madras High Court with an appeal against a recent order of a single judge restricting its route march within compounded premises. The appeal filed by an RSS functionary G Subramanian said that the High Court’s earlier order on a contempt petition was per se illegal. Citing the restrictions imposed on RSS’s proposed march, the petitioner argued that the court undone the positive direction in the original order when hearing a contempt petition filed by his organisation.
Subramanian sought the court to set aside the order of the single judge and punish the respondent officers of the state for disobeying the earlier order to permit the route march. “The modification of the order passed in the writ petition by exercising the non-existent power in contempt jurisdiction defeats the definition of route march guaranteed and granted by a clear-cut direction,” the appeal petition stated. It noted the judge had lost sight that the other demonstrations and agitations were held by other political parties in public places during the same period, though placed before the court.
The petition added that the judge ought to have pulled up and punished the state government for thwarting writ petition’s positive directions. “He failed to observe that the right to freedom of expression, to assemble peacefully and without arms; to move freely throughout the country, guaranteed under Articles 19 (1) (a), 19 (1) (b) and 19 (1) (d) of the Constitution, is snatched away by the state,” it added.
It may be noted that RSS sought permission to hold the march on October 2 which was granted by the court. However, the police denied permission citing possible law and order issues, against which, the RSS functionaries filed contempt petitions. The court modified its earlier order and restricted the event within compounded premises, rescheduling the event for November 6.