The Supreme Court on Thursday observed that farmers have the right to protest but roads cannot be blocked indefinitely. It asked farmer unions to file their response on petition seeking removal of protesting farmers from roads and posted the matter for hearing on December 7.
“Ultimately, some solution has to be found. We are not against right to protest even as legal challenge is pending but roads can’t be blocked,” the Supreme Court said.
The apex court was hearing a PIL filed by a Noida-resident Monicca Agarwal complaining of delays in daily commute caused due to the road blockade owing to the ongoing farmers’ protests.
“Redressal can be through judicial form, agitation, or parliamentary debates. But how can highways be blocked and this happen perpetually? Where does it end?”, Justices S K Kaul, who was heading a two-judge bench, remarked
The bench of Justices SK Kaul and CT Ravikumar asked the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, an umbrella body of farmers union, whether they have a right to block the road.
Responding to this, SKM said that the road management can done be better by the police and if they are unable to manage then farmers should be allowed to protest at Delhi’s Ram Lila Ground or Jantar Mantar. The farmer unions have been granted farmer unions three weeks’ time to file their response.
Earlier this month, the Supreme Court had questioned the rationale behind farmers continuing their protests, including blocking of national highways, when it has already put on hold all the three contentious farm laws.