Peaceful protest is a fundamental right: SC

The Supreme Court has said though the right to organise peaceful protests is a fundamental right, the over-exploitation of caste, religion and other divisive tactics during violent mass demonstrations often make the task difficult for the police.

A bench of Justices A K Sikri and R K Agrawal asked the police to act with utmost care as law and order needs to be restored, but it should also be ensured that unnecessary force is not used.

“It hardly needs elaboration that a distinguishing feature of any democracy is the space offered for legitimate dissent. One cherished and valuable aspect of political life in India is a tradition to express grievances through direct action or peaceful protest.

“Organised and non-violent protest marches were key weapons in the struggle for independence. The right to peaceful protest is now a fundamental right,” it said.

The court made the observation while awarding Rs 2 lakh compensation to Anita Thakur,  general secretary of the Jammu and Kashmir Panthers Party, and Rs 1 lakh each to the party’s secretary and a senior journalist who were beaten up by the police on August 7, 2007, during a protest.

“In Kashmir itself there have been numerous instances where separatist groups have provoked violence. In this scenario, the task of the police and law-enforcing agencies becomes more difficult and delicate,” the bench said. The court noted that on numerous occasions the situation went out of control due to insufficient training for police personnel.

“It is also becoming a common ground that religious, ethnic, regional language, caste and class divisions are frequently exploited to foment violence whenever mass demonstrations or dharnas, etc, take place. It is unfortunate that more often than not, such protesters take to hooliganism, vandalism and even destroy public/ private property,” the bench said, adding this further resulted in police firing exacerbating the public anger.