Date:31/10/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/10/31/stories/2007103150580100.htm

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Hartals: court notice to government

Advocate-General told to file statement on steps taken to deal with hartal

Court issues notice in a petition filed by One Earth One Life
Direction for police protection sought for those willing to work

Kochi: A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Tuesday issued notice to the State government, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) on a writ petition seeking a direction to the State government to ensure safety of the people who disagree with the holding of hartals.

The BJP has called for a hartal on November 1 and the Muslim League had organised one in Malabar on October 27.

The Bench of Chief Justice H.L. Dattu and Justice K.T. Sankaran issued the notice when a petition filed by a Thrissur-based organisation, One Earth One Life, came up before it for hearing.

The petition also sought a direction to the State government to assess the loss caused to the State during hartals, and a direction for protection to those who were willing to work and for deploying sufficient police force in places such as Kerala State Road Transport Corporation depots, hospitals, etc.

During the hearing, the Bench orally observed that there was inaction on the part of the government in taking effective steps to implement its earlier judgments imposing restrictions on the conduct of hartals and bandhs. The court said the State government should take steps to see that its orders were implemented.

The court directed the Advocate-General to file a statement on the steps taken by the government to deal with the hartal on November 1. The court expressed its displeasure over the non-appearance of the Advocate-General in important cases such as the present one.

Earlier directive

The petitioner sais a Full Bench had earlier observed that those who made a call for hartal should make it clear that nobody would be forced to participate in the strike, traffic would not be obstructed, those willing to work would not be disturbed and that the fundamental rights of citizens to move around would not be hit.