Hoardings of anti-CAA protesters in UP CAAnviolates privacy: High Court

Lucknow: In an rare move, the Allahabad High Court took up the issue of hoardings put up by the Uttar Pradesh Government, naming those who were accused of violence during protests against the controversial citizenship law on Sunday – a court holiday.

During the one-hour hearing, the court asked several questions to the State government officials. The court has reserved judgment on the matter, which is expected on Monday afternoon.

The High Court had asked the administration to take down hoardings put up in Lucknow, with photographs and personal details of people.

The attorney general, appearing for the State, responded by saying that this bench of the high court did not have jurisdiction, as the hoardings were in Lucknow.

A high court bench headed by Chief Justice Govind Mathur heard the case on Sunday, taking suo moto cognisance of the matter.

The bench, also comprising Justice Ramesh Sinha, said in oral observations that the state's action was "highly unjust" and that it was an absolute "encroachment" on personal liberty of the persons concerned.

The court had taken suo moto cognisance of the hoardings, which contained the names, photographs and addresses of anti-CAA protestors the government is holding responsible for violence.

"Good sense should prevail on the State and it must remove the hoardings before 3 pm and apprise the court about this at 3," LiveLaw quoted the bench as saying.

The AG, though, responded by questioning the court's jurisdiction and saying that PILs should not be filed on behalf of "those who break the law".

According to the Hindustan Times, the district magistrate and divisional police commissioner of Lucknow had been asked by the court to inform what law was used to put up such posters on the city's streets.

On Saturday, advocate Shashank Tripathi had filed a PIL against the hoardings. Several human rights activists and others have talked about how the hoardings put the people mentioned in danger.

In another case, The Allahabad High Court stayed the orders passed by Additional District Magistrate, Bijnor on February 24, of recovering the cost of public property damage from four people who participated in Anti-CAA Protests staged in Lucknow.

Following the orders, petitioners approached the Allahabad High Court challenging the notice of the ADM Bijnor.

On Friday, the division bench which comprised of Justice Manoj Mishra and Justice Deepak Verma noted that the coordinate bench of the High Court had entertained a similar petition in another case and had sought replies from the state government.