Court directs Director General of Police to act against both pro & anti-CAA protesters in TN

The Madras High Court on Thursday, directed the Director General of Police to see to it that no more agitations, either for or against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), take place in the State in public places without valid permission.

Justices M.M. Sundresh and Krishnan Ramasamy said there was no point in the police merely registering First Information Reports (FIRs) against the protesters without taking further steps to alleviate the inconvenience faced by schoolchildren and others.

The orders were passed on a public interest litigation petition filed by Hindu Munnetra Kazhagam president K. Gopinath, also an advocate from Tiruppur, complaining about anti CAA protesters squatting on public roads and not allowing free movement of traffic.

Responding to the PIL, State Government Pleader V. Jayaparakash Narayan told the court that the police had registered more than 20 FIRs against both pro and anti-CAA protesters and that charge-sheets had also been filed in some of the cases.

Expressing their dissatisfaction over mere registration of cases without taking active steps to disperse the protesters squatting on public roads, the senior judge in the Bench said, “If they don't move, take them into custody. What is this? How can you register FIRs and let them stay?”