Vijay's TVK Party Moves Madras High Court Challenging SOP For Political Rallies, Raises Concern Over Free Speech

Actor Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) party has approached the Madras High Court seeking modifications in the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) promulgated by the State for public meetings by political parties. The plea, filed through the party's Joint General Secretary, CTR Nirmal Kumar, states that the SOP gives priority to political parties recognised by the Election Commission of India to the exclusion of registered political parties, and thus creates an unconstitutional classification. It has also been argued that the SOP violates Article 14 of the Constitution, creating an impermissible political hierarchy. The plea also states that the SOP imposes excessive, vague, and disproportionate restrictions on speech and assembly, violating Article 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(b) of the Constitution. The plea further states that the SOP casts wide obligations on the organisers regarding crowd safety, damage to property, and compliance with the conditions. It has been submitted that law & order, policing, fire service, and traffic control are sovereign functions of the state and the SOP seeks to shift this core state function to the organisers. It has been stated that the SOP fastens blanket liability for stampedes, public property damage, etc., without requiring proof of direct, proximate, or wilful negligence on the part of the organiser. It has also been stated that the SOP does not provide any timelines, empowering authorities to delay permission, reject applications without a proper opportunity to cure defects, and impose open-ended conditions. It has also been stated that SOP does not mention anything regarding its applicability during the Model Code of Conduct period, when the norms and guidelines of the ECI would ideally prevail over SOP. Thus, the party seeks directions to the State to reframe and notify a fresh SOP in a fair, uniform and non-discriminatory manner, after duly considering the objections and suggestions of all stakeholders.TVK had initially approached the High Court seeking direction to the authorities to consider their application for permission for political meetings. On September 18, a single judge of the High Court had asked the state to frame rules that could be followed while granting permissions for all political parties. The judge had suggested that the State impose a condition, asking the parties to make a pre-deposit before seeking permission, which could then be used towards payment of compensation in case of damages.Following the Karur Stampede, similar petitions were filed seeking to frame an SOP for political gatherings. Since the petition filed by the TVK party was already pending, a division bench of the High Court had disposed of the petitions, granting liberty to the parties to implead themselves in the pending petitions.Following this, the batch of pleas was placed before the bench headed by the Chief Justice. On December 19, the Chief Justice's bench disposed of the petition by directing the State to take a call on the SOP. The court had also given liberty to challenge the SOP by filing separate cases if they had any objections to the same. Following this, the TVK has now approached the court alleging that their suggestions were not properly considered and citing shortcoming in the State's SOP.Case Title: Tamilaga Vetri Kazhgam v. The Additional Chief Secretary to GovernmentCase No: WP 17337/2026 (Filing No)

Vijay's TVK Party Moves Madras High Court Challenging SOP For Political Rallies, Raises Concern Over Free Speech

Upasana Sajeev

Tags