NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday said no protest group can occupy a designated demonstration site indefinitely, observing that the right to protest must be balanced with the rights of other citizens. Hearing pleas filed by traders’ associations over the impact of demonstrations in Delhi, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant said designated protest venues must be made available to different groups for specific periods.“You can’t occupy a site for all times. Where farmers, journalists, etc. will go? Everyone has right to protest. Designated time must be given for designated period,” CJI Surya Kant said, according to LiveLaw.The bench also said that orders granting permission for protests must clearly specify the reasons for allowing or refusing them. “You can’t prevent other people, that I am doing protest now you can’t,” the CJI observed.The court was hearing pleas raising concerns over alleged police brutality, mass detentions, the closure of Metro stations and internet shutdowns during protests, besides the impact of demonstrations on businesses.
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A traders’ counsel told the court that around 50 lakh people lived in areas surrounding the protest site and claimed that shops remained shut, with virtually nobody visiting Connaught Place. The court issued notices to the Centre and other authorities on a plea by the Kirana Committee Delhi seeking a halt to protests during the festive season.However, the bench said it could not adjudicate the traders’ grievances unless all organisations involved in the protests were made parties to the proceedings. It asked the traders’ associations to implead the organisers of the anti-CEC protests.The hearing comes days after the Centre de-notified Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site, identifying Ramlila Maidan, Burari Ground and CBD Ground as alternative venues for demonstrations.
