[BREAKING] Kerala High Court initiates suo motu contempt of court case against PFI for calling flash hartal

The Kerala High Court on Friday initiated a suo motu contempt of court case against the Popular Front of India (PFI) for calling a flash hartal, which had been banned by the Court previously [Kerala Chamber of Commerce and Industry v State of Kerala]..A division bench of Justices AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and Mohammed Nias CP strongly pulled up the organisation, which has been under fire for its activities across the nation, for violating the orders of the Court. "The action of the aforementioned persons in calling for the hartal without following the procedure contemplated in our earlier order, prima facie, amounts to contempt of the directions of this Court in the order aforementioned," the Court said. .Pertinently, the Court noted that media reports about the flash hartal today, merey mentioned call for a flash hartal, but did not mention the details of the interim order passed by the Court banning such hartals. Therefore, it requested the media to mention the Court's order banning such hartals whenever any such hartal is called for. "We, therefore, deem it necessary to once again request the Media to ensure that whenever such illegal flash hartals are called for, and it is apparent that the said hartal called is in violation of the orders passed by this Court, the public be duly informed of the said fact. This, in our view, would suffice to a large extent, in allaying the apprehensions of the general public as regards the legality of the call for hartal and also dissuade providers of public utility services from heeding to such calls for illegal hartals in future.we issue the following directions in the wake of the situation that has now arisen, where an illegal call for hartal has been made by the aforesaid persons, to the prejudice and inconvenience of the general public," the Court said..Apart from this, the Court directed the State police to ensure there is no damage to property of persons or establishments which do not support the hartal. Any damages so caused must be reported to the Court, it ordered."The said details would be necessary for this Court to take remedial action to recover such losses from the perpetrators of the illegality," the order stated.It further directed the State Police to keep in mind the provisions of the relevant penal laws, including the provisions of the Kerala Prevention of Damage to Private Property and Payment of Compensation Act, 2019 as also the provisions of Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code while registering cases against those found to be flouting the law. "Adequate police protection shall also be granted to all public utility services that apprehend violence, at the hands of those supporting the illegal hartal," the Court said..The Court recalled that it had issued an order in January 2019 in which it took note of the peculiar circumstances in the State of Kerala where calls for hartal have over the years come to carry an implied suggestion that the general public if they did not co-operate with those calling the hartal, might face threats of violence or actual violence. The Court had, therefore, ordered that any person including any political party or other association of persons, that proposes to call for a general strike or hartal, should give 7 clear days' public notice of its intention to do so. "We make it clear that hartals/strikes called without adhering to the above procedure, would be deemed illegal/unconstitutional, and while the same would entail adverse consequences to the person/party calling for the hartal, the said person/party would also be liable, on the principles of strict liability, for any loss/damage caused to citizens and government pursuant to the call for hartal/general strike," the Court's 2019 order stated.However, it noted that despite this unambiguous order, the PFI called a flash hartal yesterday, September 22..The Court suo motu impleaded the PFI State General Secretary A Abdul Sathar as an additional respondent in the matter and directed the State government to file a report.The matter will be taken up next on September 29..On September 22, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) had conducted nation-wide raids on PFI offices. Several PFI leaders were arrested in Kerala, including PFI National Secretary VP Nasarudheen aka Nasarudheen Elamaram..[Read Order]