Bombay HC bars Jarange from Azad Maidan protest without permit

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday barred Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange from staging a protest at Azad Maidan in Mumbai without prior permission, citing law and order concerns as the city prepares for the start of the 10 day Ganeshotsav festival. The bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Sandeep Marne said demonstrations must be held at designated locations and suggested the state could offer an alternative venue, such as Kharghar in Navi Mumbai, to avoid disrupting life in the city.

Jarange had threatened to march to Mumbai and begin an indefinite fast on August 29 unless the Maharashtra government granted a 10 percent quota for Marathas under the Other Backward Classes category. The court told him and his associates they were at liberty to apply for permission under new rules governing public gatherings and agitations, adding that public places cannot be occupied indefinitely. The bench said, according to the order, it would be open for the government to offer Kharghar so the tempo of life in Mumbai is not hampered, and reiterated that democracy and dissent must take place at designated venues.

Mumbai police have meanwhile granted a one day permission for...