CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has ordered the state government to permit vehicle rally or procession by citizens carrying national flag on Independence Day in Tamil Nadu. Justice G Jayachandran directed the Director General of Police not to prohibit such rallies.
The order was passed on a petition filed by A Krishna Prasad, district secretary of Yuva Morcha of BJP in Coimbatore district, challenging the denial of permission to hold a bike rally in Coimbatore with 200 persons carrying the national flag.
“This court directs the DGP not to prohibit any rally, whatsoever, by car, bike, bicycle or by walk (procession), in which the participants carry the national flag with dignity and respect,” he said in the order.
While allowing rallies on Independence Day, the judge imposed the condition that only the national flag shall be carried by the participants and not flags of any political parties or organisations. He made it clear that the participants should not cause insult to the flag or disturbance to public.
Recalling that Tirupur Kumaran had laid down his life for marching forward by carrying the national flag during the freedom struggle, Justice Jayachandran said it was “unfortunate” that permission for holding rallies carrying the national flag is denied even after 77 years of Independence.
During arguments, Additional Advocate General (AAG) J Ravindran, representing the state, submitted that insult to the national flag may be caused if 200 people, as sought in Coimbatore, are allowed to take out the bike rally, apart from the resultant indiscipline leading to disturbance to the public and the possible disruption of traffic. He also noted the flag can be permitted to be carried only on vehicles of dignitaries as per 2023 instructions of the Ministry of Home Affairs. He said the state is only concerned about ensuring the dignity of the national flag and not about any political factors.