The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Protesters burst crackers near hospital

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jul 07, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Protesters burst crackers near hospital

K.V. Subramanya

According to the rules, the sound level in `silence zones' should not exceed 50 decibels The noise level in `silence zones' should not exceed 50 decibels, according to rules

NOISE RULES: Workers of the BJP bursting firecrackers at the Malleswaram Grounds, opposite K.C. General Hospital, in Bangalore on Wednesday. — Photo: K. Murali Kumar

BANGALORE: Unmindful of the rule that silence has to be maintained around hospitals, workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday burst firecrackers for nearly 20 minutes in front of K.C. General Hospital in Malleswaram.

The BJP had organised a public meeting at the Malleswaram Grounds, opposite K.C. General Hospital, to condemn the terrorist attack on the Ayodhya complex on Tuesday and to mark the culmination of the 10-day "padayatra" by the party's Yuva Morcha State unit President and MLA, C.T. Ravi.

As the "padayatra" reached the Malleswaram Grounds around 1.30 p.m., BJP workers lit firecrackers on the road in front of the hospital. Amidst the noise, the workers waved party flags and danced to the beating of drums. Besides Mr. Ravi, the BJP General Secretary and MP from the Bangalore (South), H.N. Ananth Kumar; the party spokesman, S. Suresh Kumar; and a few MLAs were present on the occasion. Traffic was affected for some time near the grounds.

The police had deployed additional forces at the grounds. The Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order), H.C. Kishorechandra, and the Deputy Commissioner of Police (North), Syed Ulfath Hussein, supervised the security arrangements.

According to the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000, the sound level in "silence zones" should not exceed 50 decibels during the day and 40 decibels at night. Areas close to schools, hospitals and courts are silence zones. The law enforcing authorities can penalise anyone who violates the rule. Beating of drums and blowing of trumpets there are banned.

Allot land for protests, court tells Govt.

Staff Reporter writes:

The High Court of Karnataka on Wednesday observed that the Government should set apart land near Bangalore so that protests and demonstrations can be organised without causing inconvenience to the public or disrupting normal life in the city.

The court also observed that it is the Government's duty to maintain law and order during protests, and said the Government should set aside land in all districts for holding protests.

A Division Bench comprising the Chief Justice, Navudip Kumar Sodhi, and Justice S. Abdul Nazir made the observation on a public interest litigation (PIL) petition by an advocate, A.V. Amarnathan, against bandhs and protest demonstrations on the city roads organised by political parties. Seeking a direction from the court to regulate protests in Bangalore, the petitioner said that on January 7, 2005, the Deputy Chief Minister, Siddaramaiah, and the former Minister H. Vishwanath organised a rally in the city to protest against the demolition of the Kanaka Gopura of Sri Krishna Temple in Udupi.

He said though the police had allowed the organisers to hold a rally on Palace Grounds, Mr. Siddaramaiah participated in a street protest, disrupting traffic in Bangalore apart from inconveniencing the public.

The BJP organised protests on January 25 against the "Festival of Blessings." The protests, he said, were led by Mr. Ananth Kumar and the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, B.S. Yediyurappa.

Court ruling

He cited the Kerala High Court ruling that no political party has a right to call for a bandh. A party which calls for a bandh must compensate the Government and citizens in case of loss of life or property, he said and added that the Supreme Court has affirmed this judgment. He urged the court to direct the Government to prevent rallies around Vidhana Soudha and the High Court and declare bandhs and hartals on roads unconstitutional.

The PIL first came up before the court on March 24, and the Bench had directed the Government to provide a list of registered political parties in the State and ordered issue of notices to Mr. Siddaramaiah, Mr. Ananth Kumar and others. When the matter came up, the government advocate sought time to submit a list of registered political parties.

Govt.'s responsibility

The Bench observed that it is the responsibility of the Government to ensure that bandhs are peaceful. It said its directions, while disposing of the petition, will be based on the Full Bench judgment of the Kerala High Court, and adjourned further hearing of the matter to Monday.

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