New Delhi
The Supreme Court on Monday rejected the request to terminate contempt proceedings initiated against the Tamil Nadu government in the Madras High Court. The contempt proceedings were initiated due to the government’s alleged non-compliance with judicial orders related to the organization of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) route marches in the state. A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Dipankar Datta stated that the state government must submit a proposal before the High Court outlining the regulation of future marches by the RSS. The bench emphasized that the contempt court would issue appropriate orders, taking into account objections raised by the RSS, to avoid further rounds of litigation. The Supreme Court’s order stated, We have no reason to doubt that the High Court shall take into consideration all the subsequent events, most importantly, the proposal to be submitted on behalf of the state government for the future course of action. The Tamil Nadu government sought the intervention of the Supreme Court after the Madras High Court criticized it for not adhering to its orders allowing the RSS to conduct route marches in the state. In a previous hearing, the top court had instructed police authorities to grant permission to the RSS for route marches on either November 19 or 26, stating that limiting the number of marches in each district would be excessively indulgent.
