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HC seeks Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh’s replies on PILs on farmers’ stir
The petitioner requested to lift restrictions under section 144 and suspend mobile internet and bulk SMS in seven Haryana districts.
The Punjab and Haryana high court on Tuesday sought responses from the Punjab and Haryana governments and the Chandigarh administration on a batch of public interest litigations (PILs) pertaining to the ongoing farmers’ protest.
A bench comprising acting chief justice Gurmeet Singh Sandhawalia and justice Lapita Banerji issued notices on the two PILs and asked the state governments and the Chandigarh administration to file status reports by Thursday. It also directed to implead Delhi as well as protesting farmer organisations as parties to the law suits.
“The court has issued notices and fixed February 15 as the next date of hearing,”a person aware of the matter said.
One of the PILs was filed by advocate Uday Pratap Singh, a resident of Amravati Enclave in Haryana’s Panchkula, who said that the “unlawful sealing” of the border between Haryana and Punjab, particularly at Shambhu near Ambala, by Haryana authorities was done with an apparent objective of preventing farmers from exercising their constitutional right to assemble and protest peacefully.
“The road blockade not only inconveniences residents but also hampers the movement of ambulances, school buses, pedestrians, and other vehicles. This obstruction has resulted in increased traffic on alternative routes, causing delays and difficulties for including professionals like advocates, doctors and emergency services who are unable to reach their workplaces and attend promptly,” the petition said.
The petitioner sought directions to lift restrictions imposed by invoking section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and suspension of mobile internet services and bulk SMSes in seven districts of Haryana.
The second petition was filed by advocate Arvind Seth, a resident of Sector 5, Mansa Devi Complex, Panchkula. Seth sought directions to states and the Union government to ensure that all national and state highways and railway tracks in Punjab and Haryana were not blocked by the farmers’ protest and immediate action be taken against the agitators as per the provisions of National Highway Act, 1956.
