Bombay High Court quashes FIR against man who joined protest over bad road in Chandrapur

The Bombay High Court has quashed an FIR and a chargesheet filed against a man who took part in a protest against the poor condition of a road. The court said it would be a "sad day" for democracy if criminal prosecution were used to suppress peaceful protest.

Justice M W Chandwani of the Nagpur bench, in an order passed on October 29, said the distinction between the constitutional right to protest and criminal action should not be blurred.

According to the court, agitations are part of the democratic process and criminal cases should therefore not be used to crush them. The condition is that protesters do not take the law into their own hands, do not resort to violence and do not damage public or private property.

The case concerns Nishkarsh Nimgade, a resident of Chandrapur district in Maharashtra. He took part in January this year in a protest over the bad road in Nandgaon village, and the case against him was registered over his participation in that protest.

The protest followed an accident involving a vehicle on that road. Villagers had demanded action against the road contractor and officials of the Public Works Department.

The High Court referred to Article 19(1)(b) of the Constitution, which gives the right to assemble peaceably and without arms. The court said reasonable restrictions can be placed on this fundamental right, but it cannot be diluted or suppressed on the strength of vague allegations.

The court said, "The lines between the constitutional right to protest and a barrage of punitive action cannot be allowed to blur. If this thinking gains ground, it will be a sad day for democracy."