Not Esplanade this year: Calcutta HC allows TMC's July 21 rally near Birla Planetarium with 2,500-person cap

The court also directed that the gathering should not exceed 2,500 participants.
Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya allowed the rally to take place on one side of the road in front of Birla Planetarium between 12 noon and 3:30 pm on July 21, while directing Kolkata Police to keep the other carriageway open for vehicular movement to minimise traffic disruption.

Court declines Esplanade venue

The TMC has organised its July 21 Martyrs' Day rally in front of Victoria House at Esplanade for several years.

However, the court ruled that permitting the event at its traditional location would severely disrupt traffic across north and central Kolkata.

While hearing the petition filed by the Mamata Banerjee-led faction, Justice Bhattacharyya observed that allowing the meeting in front of Victoria House "was not possible" because it would choke key thoroughfares connecting different parts of the city.

The court instead approved the alternative venue near Birla Planetarium, taking into account traffic management and law and order concerns.

Strict conditions for the gathering

The High Court instructed the organisers to keep attendance within 2,500 people and directed Kolkata Police to deploy adequate personnel to maintain law and order.

Justice Bhattacharyya also ordered the organisers to submit the names and mobile numbers of 20 volunteers to the Joint Commissioner (Headquarters) of Kolkata Police.

These volunteers will be responsible for ensuring compliance with the court's directions during the programme.

The court noted that two other Martyrs' Day events are scheduled in central Kolkata on the same day—one organised by the Congress at Shahid Minar and another by a rival TMC faction near the Mahatma Gandhi statue on Mayo Road—making additional security arrangements necessary.

TMC removes Abhishek Banerjee's image, keeps only Mamata Banerjee's photos in the July 21 Martyrs' Day poster. Photo: Facebook/@kgspeak

Arguments before the court

Appearing for the Mamata Banerjee-led faction, senior advocate Kalyan Banerjee argued that the party had been holding the July 21 Martyrs' Day rally at Esplanade since 1993, except for two or three years.

He also pointed out that Kolkata Police had already permitted two other political programmes on July 21, including the Congress rally at Shahid Minar with an expected attendance of around 10,000 people and another rally by a rival TMC faction at Mayo Road with around 700 to 800 participants.

Banerjee challenged the Kolkata Police's prohibitory order under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) around Victoria House and suggested alternative venues, including Metro Channel and Birla Planetarium.

He further submitted that July 21 has been observed as Martyrs' Day since 1993 in memory of 13 Congress workers who were killed during a rally when Mamata Banerjee was serving as the Youth Congress president.

State raises law and order concerns

The West Bengal government and Kolkata Police opposed the request to hold the rally near Esplanade, arguing that multiple political gatherings in close proximity could create law and order problems.

The state also objected to the proposal for Birla Planetarium, citing the presence of hospitals and educational institutions nearby, particularly because the organisers had initially indicated that around 10,000 people might attend.

Every year on July 21, TMC holds its Martyrs' Day rally in front of Victoria House in Kolkata's downtown Esplanade area, blocking traffic for the whole day. IBNS file photo

While hearing the matter, Justice Bhattacharyya verbally remarked that Kolkata residents had experienced significant inconvenience during previous July 21 programmes, observing that the city often came to a standstill and that even court functioning had been affected during earlier editions of the event.

With the High Court's order, the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC will hold this year's July 21 Martyrs' Day programme near Birla Planetarium under court-mandated restrictions instead of its long-standing venue at Esplanade.