Mumbai, Dec 12: The Bombay High Court on Thursday pointedly asked the Maharashtra government if there was any restriction on celebrating the birth anniversary of Tipu Sultan of Mysuru in Karnataka.

The query came during a hearing of a plea filed All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) Pune President Faiyaz Shaikh who was refused permission to carry out a procession to commemorate the birth anniversaries of Tipu Sultan, and Bharat Ratna Maulana Abul Kalam Azad last month along with the Constitution Day celebrations, at Baramati in Pune district.

However, the Pune Rural Police declined permission for the events, particularly Tipu Sultan’s birth anniversary, directing Shaikh not to celebrate it publicly but to choose a private place for his rally.

The police argument was that it had received representations from another community apprehending law-and-order problems if the AIMIM rally was given the go-ahead.

On this, a division bench comprising Justice Revati Mohite-Dere and Justice Shivkumar Dige asked the Additional Public Prosecutor Kranti Hivrale, who responded in the negative but reiterated that if such a rally was allowed it could lead to a law-and-order scenario.

The judges noted that while law-and-order is the police jurisdiction, but said that if the rally could not be allowed in a particular area on the grounds of security, the organizers could have been asked to change the route, and if they flouted the rules they could face police action.

When APP Hivrale sought time on this, the judges directed Pune (Rural) Superintendent of Police Pankaj Deshmukh to remain present virtually, and he clarified that the objection was only pertaining to the rally for marking Tipu Sultan’s birth anniversary.

At this, the court pointed out that the permission sought was not solely for Tipu Sultan’s birthday commemoration but also for the Constitution Day and Bharat Ratna Maulana Azad’s birth anniversary.

“You decide the route for them, but you can’t ask them to celebrate it at their own place… there’s no reason why they can’t be allowed to take out the procession,” said Justice Mohite-Dere.

She made it clear that law-and-order cannot be the ground for denial of permission, but if the organisers used objectionable language or committed any offence, then the police are free to act against them.

The court has now posted the matter for further hearing on December 17 to enable the petitioner Shaikh personally meet Deshmukh and finalise the details of where and how the commemoration rally can be taken out.