Explainer: Can police stop farmers from proceeding to Delhi

As farmers resumed their agitation, Haryana Police on Friday used teargas shells to stop them from marching towards Delhi.

Can the police stop farmers from protesting and heading to the national capital?

Article 19(1) (b) of the Constitution guarantees the right to assemble peaceably and without arms while Article 19(1) (d) talks about the right to move freely throughout the territory of India.

However, all the rights under Article 19(1) can be subjected to reasonable restrictions as Article 19(2) of the Constitution authorises the state to use laws to restrict the freedoms guaranteed under Article 19(a1) in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the state, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, decency or morality or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence.

Three of the expressions used in Article 19(2) -- sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the state and public order – are wide enough to give leeway to the authorities to stop any protest at any time and place, should they desire so.

Generally, the authorities issue prohibitory orders to restrain the protesters from proceeding further. Earlier, such orders were passed under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code. Now, Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, empowers a district magistrate, a sub-divisional magistrate or any other executive magistrate specially empowered by the state government in this behalf to issue order in urgent cases of nuisance or apprehended danger.

Haryana Police, too, have issued prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the BNSS to stop farmers at the Shambhu border.

The right to protest is coupled with the fundamental duty under Article 51 A to safeguard public property and to abjure violence.

There are certain procedural requirements as well. A ‘No Objection Certificate (NOC)’ has to be obtained from the police station within whose jurisdiction the protest is planned and various details such as the name, address and contact number and other details of the organisers, reasons for the protest, duration of the protest, approximate number of participants, place of assembly, route of the rally and use of loudspeakers, etc, have to be furnished.

On December 2, the Supreme Court asked Punjab farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal to persuade the protesting farmers not to obstruct highways and cause inconvenience to people.

Acknowledging the farmers’ right to peaceful protests, a Bench led by Justice Surya Kant had cautioned them against disrupting public life.

"In a democratic set-up, you can engage in peaceful protests but do not cause inconvenience to people. You all know that the Khanauri border is a lifeline for Punjab. We are not commenting on whether the protest is right or wrong," Justice Kant had told advocate Guninder Kaur Gill, who represented Dallewal.