Case Summary and Outcome

The Madras High Court ruled that the petitioner could hold a public meeting to discuss a militant group. The petitioner sought a permit to hold a public meeting to discuss the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam), which was considered a militant group. . The court reasoned that “permission to stage a demonstration could not be rejected just on the presumption that a person was bound to violate the law.”

Facts

This case must be understood in a broader geopolitical context. The LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) is a militant group in Sri Lanka that demands secession of territories where the minority Tamil-speaking population is concentrated. It is formally recognized as a terrorist group in many countries, including India. The group was created in the context of allegedly discriminatory policies of the Sri Lankan government against the Tamils. Tamil Nadu is India’s southern most State, which is believed to be the place of origin of both the Tamil language and the Tamil-speaking migrants in Sri Lanka. This linguistic and cultural tie between Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu often creates sympathies for the cause of the LTTE in the latter.

Decision Overview

The Honourable Mr. Justice V. Ramasubramanian, in the High Court of Judicature at Madras, wrote the opinion of the court. The first issue that the court discussed was whether granting permission to the petitioner to hold a public meeting would violate Law and Order. However, the court did not analyze this issue further and instead affirmed the judgment held in S. Sivabalan v. Deputy Superintendent of Police, which ultimately permitted the holding of a public meeting.

The second issue that the court discussed was whether the motive to hold a public conference was to commemorate Arignar Anna’s Birthday, or rather to create a venue in which the petitioner and his supporters could speak openly about the LTTE. The respondent denied permission to the petitioner to hold such a conference because the LTTE is a banned organization, and the respondent assumed that such a conference would be held to discuss the LTTE in favorably and against public order. However, the court held that “permission to stage a demonstration could not be rejected just on the presumption that a person was bound to violate the law.” [1] Thus, the court ordered that the petitioner be allowed to hold the meeting.

[1] Allow MDMK meeting HC tells police, Nov. 27, 2014, The Hindu, available at http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/allow-mdmk-meeting-hc-tells-police/article6637871.ece.