Togadia plea on ban dismissed

The High Court on Wednesday dismissed the petition by VHP leader Praveen Togadia seeking to set aside the ban on his entry into Karnataka to participate in a Vishwa Hindu Samajotsava in Bengaluru.

Justice Abdul Nazeer, who heard the matter, dismissed the petition saying that the court cannot interfere if the matter pertained to law and order. “It is well settled that this court should not normally interfere with the matter related to law and order. The court cannot act as an appellate authority over the decision of respondent 2 (DC Mysuru). So, the order cannot be termed illegal or that it has been passed with an ulterior motive. It is not a fit case to grant stay of the impugned order. The interim prayer is rejected,” he said.

Togadia  was scheduled to participate in Virat Hindu Samajotsava in Udupi, Mysuru and other places. He had stated that the government order restricting his movement and ban on his speech amounted to violation of freedom of speech.