Kolkata: BJP Chief Amit Shah will hold a rally today in the heart of Kolkata, after the city municipal corporation and the fire brigade, on the Calcutta High Court's direction, gave him the permission.
On Friday, High Court gave conditional permission to BJP chief Amit Shah to hold rally outside Victoria Hall and also asked the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and Fire brigade to set the necessary guidelines that needed to be followed. The BJP welcomed the HC's order and called it a moral victory.
"The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has granted permission to BJP President Amit Shah's rally tomorrow," Mayor in-council Debasish Kumar said.
Heated arguments were exchanged when the KMC and Fir brigade denied permission to the BJP to hold rally outside Victory Hall that is located in Central Kolkata. They justified their stand citing security reasons and inconvenience to daily commuters.
The BJP had applied for permission in July to use the Victoria House, a popular venue for political meetings, but its request was repeatedly rejected by various city agencies as well as the police which cited traffic problems.
The BJP then moved the Calcutta High Court alleging a political motive. "This must be a record in India...perhaps it can be entered in the Guinness book...we have gone to court three times to seek this venue," stated Rahul Sinha.
Following this, the High Court asked the BJP to "comply with statutes" of the city's civic body and fire brigade and appointed two special officers to assist the party.
"There is no argument that a meeting cannot be held in front of Victoria House, which is a public place," the court had observed.
