Madras HC seeks uniform guidelines for political events

Chennai, Sep 18 (IANS) The Madras High Court on Thursday underscored the need for the Tamil Nadu government to frame uniform guidelines requiring political parties and organisations to make monetary deposits before conducting public meetings or rallies.

The measure, the court said, would ensure accountability and enable recovery of costs if public property is damaged during such events.

A bench of Justice N. Sathish Kumar directed Additional Public Prosecutor E. Raj Thilak to file a report by September 24 on the proposed guidelines, making them applicable to all political parties and associations without discrimination.

The direction was issued while hearing a writ petition filed by Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), led by actor Vijay, which accused the police of imposing "onerous and impractical" conditions for permission to hold a campaign in Tiruchi on September 13.

Senior counsel V. Raghavachari, appearing for the TVK, argued that the police had stipulated 23 conditions, including one that barred pregnant women, the elderly, and persons with disabilities from attending. "How can a party prevent anyone from exercising their democratic right to attend?" he asked.

In an affidavit, TVK Deputy General Secretary C.T.R. Nirmal Kumar said the party was registered on principles of secularism, social justice, equality, and linguistic harmony, and had quickly grown into a major political force, attracting women, youth, and students. He alleged that the party’s rapid rise had triggered hostility from a dominant political family, resulting in discriminatory treatment from the police.

The affidavit stated that TVK General Secretary N. Anand, alias ‘Bussy’ Anand, applied on September 6 for permission to hold a campaign at police-notified venues. Permission was granted only on September 10, with conditions the party described as arbitrary and unreasonable.

Despite the restrictions, Vijay’s campaign went ahead peacefully on September 13 with a large turnout, it said.

The TVK claimed that, unlike other ruling and opposition parties, it was consistently subjected to unfair restrictions. To prove its point, the party submitted a copy of the permission granted to another political party with much more liberal terms. The party urged the court to direct the Director General of Police to ensure fair and non-discriminatory permission for Vijay’s campaigns scheduled across the state between September 20 and December 20.

Meanwhile, the APP produced photographs in court showing damage to public property when large crowds gathered for the event.

--IANS

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