Nainital: The Uttarakhand High Court on Thursday said that there will be no television debates or the use of social media in the 'Purola Mahapanchayat'. The High Court heard a PIL seeking a ban on the 'Mahapanchayat' convened by the religious organisations on Thursday.
While hearing the case, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Rakesh Thapliyal directed the state government to take action according to the law in such cases. The bench further said that neither any TV debate nor any social media will be used in such cases. For the people against whom the case has been registered, the police should investigate it. The state government should submit an answer in this matter within three weeks, the court said.
Advocate Shah Rukh Alam, a member of the Association for the Protection of Civil Rights, before a division bench headed by Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi on Wednesday filed a public interest litigation to ban the 'Mahapanchayat'. He filed the PIL before the vacation bench of the Supreme Court, however, the vacation bench of the Supreme Court refused to hear this petition and asked to file a petition in the High Court of the state.
The Chief Justice of the Uttarakhand High Court while approving the hearing of the petition, had instructed to file a petition in the High Court Registry. Shah Rukh Alam told the court that there was communal tension in Purola after a minor girl from Purola was lured by two youths. Although the accused have been arrested. He feared that 'hate speech' would be delivered by the leaders of religious organisations in the 'Mahapanchayat', which would worsen the atmosphere.
Meanwhile, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) Party supremo Asaduddin Owaisi alleged that Muslims are being targeted in Uttarakhand under a well-planned conspiracy. Taking to Twitter, Owaisi wrote, "In Uttarakhand, Muslims are being targeted under a well-thought-out conspiracy. Based on lies, every possible effort is being made to deprive the Muslims of their lives and property. People of BJP and Sangh Parivar are fully involved in this conspiracy.
The rhetoric of 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas' on one side and the silence of the Prime Minister on the other side. RSS's Bhagwat says 'Muslims are safest in the world in India'. Bhagwat should go to Uttarkashi and say this. The truth is that the Muslims in India are fighting alone against the terror of violent Hindutva."
