After a row of nuisance and violence staged by Kanwariyas over the past ten days across various cities of North India, the Supreme Court on Friday directed the police to take strict action against those responsible for erupting violence and breaching laws.
A three-judge bench of the apex court, headed by CJI Dipak Misra, and comprising Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud, said that “Damage to public properties is a serious issue. This is a grave situation and this must stop. We will take action and won’t wait for amendments.”
The mandate was announced following the violent act from Wednesday, where a group of Kanwariyas, armed with iron rods and sticks, smashed a car in Delhi’s Moti Nagar area after the driver allegedly tried to brush past one of them while moving on a busy road.
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The concern was raised by the government’s lawyer Attorney General K K Venugopal, who told the Supreme Court that “Every week we have major riots including educated people. We had Maratha protests, SC/ST protests, Kanwars damaging cars. The time demands for an FIR and responsibilities fixed.”
Police across the nation have been severely criticised for being easy on the trouble makers. Responding to the criticism, the police on Friday arrested six Kanwariyas, including a man identified as Pappu, in connection with the vandalising of cars during Kanwar Yatra.
