MADURAI: In a ruling that may have huge implications in poll-bound Tamil Nadu , the Madras high court on Friday banned all political meetings and rallies near streetcorners/junctions, thoroughfares and in residential neighbourhoods, saying such events could only be allowed outside urban areas.“Since people’s life is affected and their free movement is crippled and even children and old people are affected because of the conduct of the meetings and rallies on street corners, at roads, thoroughfares and near residential areas, there shall be a direction to authorities not to permit political parties to conduct meetings and rallies in street corners, roads, thoroughfares and near residential areas, affecting free movement and peaceful living of people,” ruled a division bench of Justice N Kirubakaran and Justice S S Sundar on Friday.Taking note of the nuisance that increases, especially during elections, the bench put the state home secretary and the director general of police on notice saying many political parties were conducting meetings and rallies ahead of the April 18 election to Parliament and 18 assembly seats in the state.As a small concession, the high court bench, however, said it would be always open to the authorities to allow political parties to hold meetings outside urban areas in Tamil Nadu.In this regard, the bench cited the Supreme Court judgment in the famous Ramlila Maidan case and cited the apex court ruling that citizens/persons have a right to leisure, to sleep, not to hear and to remain silent…Right to privacy has been held to be a fundamental right of the citizen being an integral part of Article 21of the Constitution.The bench was passing orders on a petition filed by S P Narayanan of Tiruchendur, complaining that the authoritieshad given permission to political parties to conduct meetings and rallies on busy car streets leading to Tiruchendur Lord Murugan Temple, thereby causing inconvenience to public life.The petitioner said even ambulances were held up because of the stages erected by political parties on busy streets and that there were instances of party functionaries getting into tussle with ambulance personnel.Stating the difficulties of the devotees and visiting tourists, the petitioner sought rescinding of permission granted to political parties to conduct meetings on the car streets near Tiruchendur temple.In response, the court commented that the petition had been filed at the right time and said it took judicial note of the fact that meetings by political parties in urban residential neighbourhoods affected public life.The bench has posted the matter to April 5.

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