No permission for bandh, protest can be staged at Freedom Park, clarifies Bengaluru police

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: As several organised bodies, associations and political parties have called for Karnataka Bandh demanding the state government to stop the release of Cauvery river water to Tamil Nadu, the City Police Commissioner imposed section 144 from Thursday midnight to the next 24 hours prohibiting assembly of more than five people at a place in the city limits.

Speaking to News Trail, the Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayananda on Thursday said that no organisations have sought permissions to carry out any procession in connection with the bandh so far.

Sharing a notification, the top cop said that "Supreme Court has declared bandhs illegal and there is no question of giving permission for any kind of bandhs. The Supreme Court has termed bandhs as unconstitutional," the Commissioner said.

The notification shared by the Police Commissioner read, "As we find that organised bodies, association or registered political parties, by their act of calling and holding bands, trample upon the rights of citizens protected by the constitution, we are of the view that this court has sufficient jurisdiction to declare that the calling of "bandh" and the holding of it is unconstitutional especilly since it is undoubted that the nation by leading to national loss of production. We cannot also ignore the destruction of public and private properties when a bandh is enforced by the political parties or other organisations. We are inclined to the view that the political parties and organisations which call for such bandhs and enforce them are liable to compensate the Government, the public and the private citizen for the loss suffered by them for such destruction. The state cannot shirk its responsibility of taking steps to recoup and of recouping the loss from the sponsors and organisers of such bandhs. We think that these aspects justify our intervention under Article 226 of the Constitution."

Citing this order, the Bengaluru police has clarified that no permission can be granted either for bandh or for carrying out any procession. However the organisations can hold protest at Freedom Park, the police said in the notification.