The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear a petition on 16 December seeking guidance from the authorities to immediately evict farmers who are protesting against three new farm legislation at several border points in Delhi, claiming that commuters are facing difficulties as a result of road blockades and the gatherings could lead to a rise in the number of COVID-19 incidents.
According to the website of the supreme court, Chief Justice S A Bobde and Justices A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian will hear the plea filed by law student Rishabh Sharma, who has also sought instruction from the authorities to open the roads at Delhi’s borders, move the protesters to the venue and offer instructions on the social distance and use of masks at the protest site in order to stop the protest.
The petition alleged that the Delhi Police had allowed the demonstrators to hold a peaceful demonstration here on the Nirankari ground in Burari on 27 November, but in spite of that they had blocked the boundaries of the national capital. “As a result of continuing demonstrations at Delhi’s borders, the streets have been blocked by demonstrators and border crossings, which have disrupted vehicle traffic, and people commuting to and from Delhi to get medical attention at reputable government/private hospitals,” the plea, filed through advocate Om Prakash Parihar, said.
It referred to the order of 7 October issued by the Supreme Court, in response to a petition against the blockade of a road in the Shaheen Bagh district, by those protesting against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, which declared that public spaces could not be occupied indefinitely and demonstrations expressing dissension had to be held in designated places alone. Referring to the recommendations of the COVID-19 issued by the Government, the petition claimed that despite the precautions not to organise major gatherings in the middle of the pandemic, there were far-reaching lakhs.
It is important to note that with a view to preventing the spread of the Coronavirus Pandemic Disease Population (COVID-19), it is very necessary to clear the gatherings and this protest is further blocking the roads for all emergency/medical services that are very much expected to be provided within the jurisdiction of Delhi in order to avoid coronavirus spread. “The petitioner is requesting an urgent order from this court to urgently remove/disperse such a mass assembly.
