Kolkata, March 24 The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday allowed a Ram Navami procession organized by an organization in Howrah on March 26, but imposed strict restrictions on carrying weapons.
The petitioner, Anjani Putra Sena, a non-profit organization, approached the high court claiming that the police had refused permission to hold a procession on Ram Navami in Howrah city.
The lawyer representing the organization stated that the organization has been holding Ram Navami processions for the past 25 years.
The court had, on March 20, permitted the Vishwa Hindu Parishad to hold the Ram Navami rally there from 3 pm to 6 pm on the same day.
Advocate General Kishore Dutta, representing the West Bengal government, requested that the Anjani Putra Sena procession be held in the morning.
Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya granted permission to the organization to hold the procession between 8.30 am and 1 pm on March 26, to ensure that it does not coincide with the timing of a Vishwa Hindu Parishad rally.
Imposing conditions, the court directed the organizers to ensure that the number of participants should not exceed 500 at any given time, and that no weapons should be carried during the procession.
Justice Bhattacharyya also stated that only one vehicle, which would carry the tableau and the idol of Lord Rama, would be allowed in the rally.
However, participants would be allowed to carry flags and/or any other symbolic weapons, which should be made only of PVC, the court directed.