Shillong: Meghalaya government on Thursday said
its decision to ban bandh calls was in line with the Supreme
Court's verdict and if anybody is aggrieved they can file a
petition in the apex court.
"The government order banning bandhs, hartals and
strikes is in line with the court's verdict. We are only
carrying out the order," Law Minister B M Lanong said today,
two days after organisations in Meghalaya vowed to defy the
order saying it was a "suppression of democratic rights".
He said the court had ruled that the state government
was sitting idle when people were disturbing normal life in
the face of calling bandhs and hartals.
"If anybody is aggrieved, they can file a petition in
the Supreme Court," Lanong said, indicating that the state
government was firm on carrying out the court's order.
The Gauhati High Court had also last month declared as
illegal all bandhs in Assam and Meghalaya saying it is a
violation of the fundamental rights of the citizens.
Following that, Meghalaya government issued a
notification banning all kinds of bandhs, hartals and
picketing which affects normal life of people.
However, several organisations led by the Khasi
Students' Union (KSU) on Monday decided to defy the state
government's order.
PTI
First Published: Thursday, February 04, 2010, 13:59