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Supreme Court allows RSS march in Tamil Nadu, junks plea against Madras HC order
The Supreme Court rejected the Tamil Nadu government's appeal against the Madras high court order allowing route marches by RSS in the state.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected the Tamil Nadu government's appeal against the Madras high court order allowing route marches by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in the state.
The Madras high court had on February 10 allowed the route marches despite the state refusing permission citing the threat of attack on the marches from the banned Muslim organisation Popular Front of India (PFI).
The state government had approached the top court challenging the high court's order which was dismissed on Tuesday by a bench of justices V Ramasubramanian and Pankaj Mithal.
Earlier, senior advocate Mahesh Jethmalani, appearing for the RSS, said the right to assemble peacefully without arms under Article 19(1)(b) cannot be curtailed in the absence of a very strong ground.
He questioned the ban imposed by the government on the RSS to carry out marches in some areas on the ground that the PFI was also recently banned.
"Not a single incident of violence was reported from the areas, where these marches were carried out," Jethmalani said, adding that members of the RSS were attacked where they were sitting peacefully.
On March 17, the top court had deferred the hearing on the plea of the state government challenging the high court order after it was told that the state had filed a fresh appeal challenging the original order, dated September 22, 2022, that directed the Tamil Nadu Police to consider the RSS representation and grant permission to conduct the programmes without conditions.
On March 3, the Tamil Nadu government had told the top court that it is not completely opposed to allowing the RSS's route marches and public meetings across the state on March 5 but cited intelligence reports to say these cannot be held in every street or locality.
