No Blanket Ban on Public Meetings in State: AP High Court

Amaravati: The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Monday refused to extend the interim order or grant an interim order de novo in the case related to G.O. Rt No.1. The division bench led by the Chief Justice of the High Court Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra took up the matter for hearing after the Supreme Court said it will not interfere in the matter. The division bench said it will hear the matter again on Tuesday, January 24. Earlier in the day, the high court rapped the vacation bench and the petitioners questioned them as to what was the urgency in filing a lunch motion over this case. The division bench further said the vacation bench behaved akin to a ‘De facto Chief Justice’. In their writ petition, the petitioners argued that there is a complete ban on people’s fundamental right to assemble and move freely under the impugned G.O. Rt No.1. They said prohibition of licenses to conduct public meetings is unconstitutional and also ultra vires Section 30 of the Act.
The high court observed that no citizen is entitled to claim that it’s his fundamental right to conduct a meeting on a public road. The Chief Justice said it seems the petition was filed with a malafide intent. The court also did not find the merit in the petitioner’s claim that the G.O. Rt No.1 has banned the political rallies or roadshows, however it said, GO has been issued with certain guidelines for holding public meetings on roads and national highways.