Madras High Court Permits Hindu Munnani To Hold Peaceful Demonstrations In Solidarity With Hindus In Bangladesh

Allowing a petition filed by the organization, Justice G Jayachandran said that when demonstrations could be held in the state to show solidarity with the Tamils in Sri Lanka, the same could be done for the Hindus in Bangladesh. The court also emphasized that the people had a democratic right to hold peaceful demonstrations.

The court thus directed the State Police to allow a peaceful demonstration by the organization on August 27 between 3 pm and 4 pm. The court also directed the organization to ensure that the free flow of traffic is not disturbed.

The petition was filed by the Chennai City Secretary of Hindu Munanni, Siva Vijayan. It was argued that after the fall of the Sheik Hasina-led government, the country was witnessing an increase in violence against the Bangladeshi Hindus. It was alleged that there were incidents of rape, death and even demolition of Hindu temples.

Vijayan submitted that while many political parties in the country had raised voices against the genocide in Palestine, not a single voice was raised for the genocide of Hindus in Bangladesh. It was in this background, that the organization decided to hold demonstrations seeking action.

When the matter was taken up, the Government Advocate informed the court that the situation in the country has improved after the interim government took charge and thus there was no necessity to hold the demonstrations.

The court, however, opined that permission for the demonstration was sought much before the interim government took charge. The court also opined that the reasons cited by the state for denying permission for the demonstration was untenable.

Thus, the court was inclined to allow the petition and ordered accordingly.

Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (Mad) 324

Case Title: Siva Vijayan v Home Secretary and Others

Case No: WP 24093 of 2024