The Bombay High Court on July 25 rejected a petition by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) against the denial by the Mumbai Police of permission for a protest at Azad Maidan to protest against the genocide in Gaza, Bar and Bench reported.
 
The Bench found the petition untenable and rejected it, noting that CPI(M) had not sought permission for the protest but only challenged the denial of the All India Solidarity Organisation's application and asked the petitioner to "show patriotism for the citizens of our own country first".
 
The Mumbai Police had turned down an application dated June 17 submitted by the All India Solidarity Organisation for permission to hold a protest at Azad Maidan against the so-called genocide in Gaza. The CPI(M) had challenged this denial in the High Court.
 
The court noted that CPI(M) lacked locus standi to challenge the order as it was not the one who had approached the Mumbai Police.
 
A Bench of Justices Ravindra Ghuge and Gautam Ankhad rejected the plea, also observing that instead of focusing on issues thousands of miles away, the party should concentrate on problems affecting India.
 
"Your country has many problems to address. We don't want anything of this nature. I regret to say, you are all short-sighted. You are looking at Gaza and Palestine. Why don't you do something for our own nation. Be patriots. Talking on behalf of Gaza and Palestine is not patriotism. Talk for the causes in our own nation. Practice what you preach," Justice Ghuge stated, as reported by LiveLaw.
 
The Court also recommended that the party would do well to adopt issues of local civic importance like dumping of garbage, pollution, sewage, and flooding.
 
The Bench remarked, "You are an organisation registered in India. If you could take up causes like garbage dumping, pollution, sewerage, flooding. We are just mentioning examples. You are not demonstrating on those but on something occurring thousands of miles away from the country," according to Bar and Bench.
 
The judges remarked that the matter on which the petitioners wish to protest is ideally to be left to the foreign department or external affairs ministry of the country, pointing out the divergence between the party and the Central government's position, as per LiveLaw.
 
Justice Ghuge commented, "You don't know the dust it could kick up. getting on to the Palestine side or the Israel side. Why do you want to do this? It's obvious, going by the party you represent, that you don't understand what this could do to the foreign affairs of the country," according to LiveLaw.
 
Senior Advocate Mihir Desai, who appeared for CPI(M), also argued that police had declined the application primarily on two reasons: being anti-India foreign policy and threat of law and order. He said that citizens have the freedom to agitate at chosen places irrespective of foreign policy concerns, a stance reinforced by Supreme Court rulings, said Bar and Bench.
 
The State's Additional Public Prosecutor stated that police received objections and expected issues of law and order if the protest was permitted, as per LiveLaw.
 
As per LiveLaw, Justice Ghuge noted, "Where our own citizen or common man is not involved why are you pursuing that cause. Throwing garbage wherever they like is not a problem? Do we have so much time to waste hearing such a case when we have hundreds of our own citizens' cases pending? Are they not our constitutional matters?"