Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court on Thursday allowed Trinamool to hold a political meeting on Sept 26 from 4pm to 6pm at the Serampore court complex, which will be attended by former CM Mamata Banerjee , after the trustee of Mahesh Jagannath Dev’s Snanpiri Maidan refused permission to hold the meeting on its property.
The state had on Sept 11, offered the party two alternative venues in Serampore, but it rejected both.
Additional advocate general Bilwadal Bhattacharyya said the police concern was whether the party had been allowed “subject to” the landowner’s permission. Justice Bhattacharyya replied, “Your party also enjoyed the same privilege for 15 years.” The state had also maintained that the meeting could be held only on a Sunday. Questioning the state’s appeal, the judge asked, “How are police authorities affected? A senior advocate for TMC alleged the ruling dispensation was being given a leeway.
After hearing arguments on the venue and size of the gathering, a single bench of Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya permitted 1,000 members to assemble for the meeting on a Saturday.
He said the board’s July 8 resolution against allowing political meetings or programmes should not be implemented on a “pick and choose basis”. “If you have a right to resist, this right should be exerted uniformly,” he told the trustee’s counsel. The court also requested the Hooghly district judge to grant necessary permission. It directed that no speeches should be made that could cause communal disharmony or create a law-and-order problem.