8.2.8. Stay on Caste-Based Rallies in UP

The Allahabad High Court stayed caste-based rallies in Uttar Pradesh, a move that will block off a key avenue that the major political parties use to expand their support base, especially before elections.

The Lucknow bench of the High Court sent a notice staying caste-based rallies to four major political parties, the Union and the State governments, and the Election Commission. The four parties are the Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).

Holding political rallies by certain groups to address issues specific to them and seeking to win their electoral support is a common practice in the country, most prominently in Uttar Pradesh, where two of the major parties have specific caste bases. The petitioner said there had been a spurt of such rallies in the state, damaging social unity and harmony, and that they were against the spirit of the Constitution.

There is no legal bar to a caste rally, as long as no law is violated. In fact, Article 19(1)(b) of the Constitution gives citizens a Fundamental Right to assemble peacefully. A political party can call a meeting of a caste to discuss the problems facing that community, and there is no law barring such a meeting.

The aforementioned decisions of the Supreme Court and the Allahabad High Court may be perceived as making or amending the law, a function that is in the domain of the legislature.