‘Pick different venue next year,' says Calcutta High Court on TMC's July 21 rally
A petition filed before Justice Tirthankar Ghosh alleged the rally caused inconvenience to the public. While refusing to intervene this year, the judge said, 'At the last moment, I will not change the venue. But from next year, select another place like Sahid Minar, Brigade Parade Ground, or Salt Lake Stadium. Political parties have emotional attachment to such days, but stadiums should be used for such programs.'
The petitioner had pointed out that the rally, to be held on a working Monday, would disrupt traffic and affect office-goers. Justice Ghosh remarked, 'For how many more days will people tolerate? Declare it a holiday. If such programs are held on working days, how will police manage traffic?'
During the hearing, TMC counsel Biswaroop Bhattacharya argued the petition was politically motivated. 'This has been going on for 13 years,' he said. Advocate General Kishore Dutta submitted, 'They are alleging traffic jams. But traffic curbs happen during any major program, even when the Prime Minister or President visits, or during events at Brigade Parade Ground.'
Dutta also questioned the timing of the plea: 'Why was the petition filed just seven days before the rally, when it happens every year? Hundreds to thousands come from the districts; even during Pujas, there are curbs.'
Justice Ghosh, however, said, 'Can you (the state) say there will be no congestion? Let the Police Commissioner submit an affidavit that there will be no traffic disruption.'
Petitioner Shamim Ahmed said, 'We are not asking for a ban. We are saying that Section 144 is imposed from KC Das to Victoria House. When other parties seek permission to hold events there, the state cites traffic disruption as a reason to deny it. Police have already issued notifications stating curbs across major streets.'
Justice Ghosh said that July 21 cannot be observed by 'blocking roads, causing jams, and seizing buses'. A long hearing will be held to decide whether future rallies can be held in front of Victoria House. Until then, the court directed that both the police and ruling party must ensure no traffic jams occur.
The Kolkata Police Commissioner has been asked to submit a bond stating this guarantee. Police notices already issued regarding the rally must be submitted to the court on Friday, Justice Ghosh said. The state will then argue the admissibility of the case.
Since 2011, the rally has been held annually, typically in front of the Victoria House, to commemorate the 1993 police firing that killed 13 protestors from the then-Congress and Trinamool Congress.
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'We pleaded with the people to keep away from the Central Jail… Despite our pleas, hordes of people tried to force their way into the jail.' There are different narratives about what happened before the police opened fire, killing 22 people. Bazaz says 'the mob became uncontrollable and some forced their way into the outer compound (of the jail)', with the District Magistrate ordering the arrest of the mob's 'ring leaders'. But no one tried to pacify or warn the protesters. Prof Ghulam Hassan Khan, in his book Freedom Movement In Kashmir 1931-1940, says around 200 people were peacefully sitting inside the jail premises. 'By 12.30 pm, the muezzin gave a call to prayer… A little later, the District Magistrate, City Munsiff, Superintendent of Police, and Assistant Superintendent of Police arrived. No sooner did they come out of their vehicles than the people began shouting slogans,' Khan writes. 'Of all the officials present… not even one went forward to the crowd to reason with it and pacify it. The official Enquiry Commission, which investigated the affair, deplored this attitude and recorded its opinion that the crowd ought at least to have been told by the District Magistrate that it was a criminal gathering and ran the great risk of a clash with authorities,' Bazaz writes. 'The arrests highly excited the crowd, who demanded the release of their leaders… (The crowd) became infuriated and threw stones. Telephone lines were shaken and subsequently cut. Attempts were made to set fire to the Police Lines… At this stage, the firing was ordered. According to the official report, 10 men were killed and several wounded. It was found on July 26 that 21 persons died as a result of the jail incident,' Bazaz writes. Khan writes: 'Finding that the people were resolute and determined, authorities suddenly stopped firing and the police disappeared. People rushed into the jail compound. They took out bedsteads from the quarters of the jail guards, placed on them the dead and injured, and carried them to the Jamia Masjid.' In his autobiography, Abdullah writes, 'I was sitting quietly when a terrified young man burst into my house and told me of the firing. He said the dead were being brought in a procession towards the city. I was mortified at what this may trigger… Rioting and plundering had started at Zainakadal and Bahorikadal… I learnt that some Muslims, who were taking a dead body to his home, had asked Hindu shopkeepers to pull down their shutters as a mark of respect. They refused. This provided the pretext for anti-social elements to go on a rampage. After the situation had limped back to normal, the police managed to recover property stolen from Hindu shops.' Bazaz, however, has another version. 'The jail firing created great resentment in the mob against Hindus. So when the procession reached Maharaj Gunj, a busy trade centre of the city, Hindu shops that had been closed after the jail incident were broken open and looted,' Bazaz writes. 'Serious rioting followed… Hundreds of Hindu houses and shops were denuded of their contents… Three Hindus were murdered and 163 wounded.' In his book, Ahmad argues that the findings of the Enquiry Commission, set up by the Maharaja, were biased. 'It (the Commission) appeared to be at pains to absolve the men and officers of the government responsible for the killing of unarmed people and throw mud of culpability on the victims. The bias against Muslims freely flowed through the report,' Ahmad writes. 'When Mrs Thakur Das, a Hindu lady, testified through a written statement that 'the sepoys fired without a cause' … her statement was dismissed as a possible outcome of a 'grudge against the government'.'
