The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to stop protest rallies being carried out by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal in Delhi-NCR region in the wake of the communal clashes in Haryana's Nuh and Gurugram. The Supreme Court asked police to ensure no hate speeches were made against any community in the rallies and issued notices to Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Delhi governments over the matter.
The Supreme Court has posted the matter for hearing on Friday (August 4).
"We hope and trust that state along with police shall ensure that there is no hate speech against any community or violence against any property," a bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Justice SV Bhatti said.
The court also dirtected that additional police force or paramilitary force be deployed in sensitive areas. The court also directed the authorities to video record the rallies in sensitive areas and preserve the footages.
The top court was hearing a plea seeking to stop the rallies being carried out by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal in Delhi-NCR region.
The plea was filed as an Interlocutory Application(IA) in a pending writ petition concerning hate speeches, Live Law reported.
"There are 23 protest marches which are coming to the capital...violence in the neighbouring state...it is very urgent," senior advocate CU Singh told the court while requesting an urgent hearing.
Communal Violence In Nuh Kills 6, Spreads Into Gurugram
Communal violence erupted in Nuh district on Monday evening after a mob attacked a VHP procession following rumours that cow vigilante Monu Manesar would be participating in the march.
The violence has spread to neighbouring Gurugram, an hour away from Delhi. Delhi Police has strengthened security at sensitive places amid concerns of a spill over in the national capital.
The VHP held agitations in parts of Delhi in protest agaisnt the Nuh communal clashes. The protests at Nirman Vihar metro station blaocked traffic in Delhi's Vikas Marg, which connects east Delhi to the central parts of the city.
In a statement, Delhi Police said elaborate security arrangements were made at all sensitive places in Delhi and additional police forces were deployed. Drones were also used to keep a watch on the situation. "Any attempt to harm Delhi's security and communal harmony will be dealt with strictly," the Delhi Police said.
The death toll in the communal clashes rose to six on Wednesday. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, in a video message, appealed for peace and said 116 people have been arrested in connection with the violence.
While no new incident was reported from Nuh, the epicentre of the violence, on Wednesday, 14 companies of paramilitary forces have been stationed. In total, 30 companies of Haryana Police and 20 companies of Central paramilitary forces have been deployed in the state.