Cannot occupy a place indefinitely in the name of protest

Making an important observation on the Central Delhi protest, the Supreme Court has said that no place can be occupied indefinitely in the name of protest. CJI Surya Kant said that you cannot occupy a place forever,⁠there are other protesters too.⁠Where will farmers go, where will lawyers go. He said that everyone has the right to protest. Designated protest sites should be available for a fixed period, and everyone must abide by this.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said that permission to protest on July 20 was granted for only one day, but the protesters did not vacate the place and continued to occupy it. They marched towards Parliament. Parliament is not just a political building, you cannot march to Parliament, and you cannot march to the Supreme Court either.

Appearing in court on behalf of the traders, Mukul Rohatgi said that large-scale violence has taken place during protests in some parts of the world. Responding to this, Menaka Guruswamy said that there has been no violence here. Do not bring European incidents into this. On this, the CJI said that these are two conflicting claims. Where will shopkeepers and street vendors go? We will have to identify a place for protests where the livelihoods of poor traders are not affected.(UPDATED ON 3RD NOEMBER 2026)