The High Court Thursday permitted the government to use Indoor Sports Stadium here for election purposes between 14 and 16 April.
A division bench of Chief Justice Gita Mittal and JusticeTashi Rabstan permitted the government to allow public meetings by thecandidates of political parties in Srinagar parliamentary Constituency as wellas training of the poll staff in the Indoor Sports Stadium here.
The Court asked the deputy commissioner Srinagar who isdistrict election officer to consider applications of the candidates who haveapproached him for holding the public meetings in the Indoor Sports Stadium.
The deputy commissioner had petitioned the high courtseeking directions to use Indoor Sports Stadium Srinagar for election purposeswhich included training of the election staff and holding of the publicmeetings by the candidates of the political parties between 14 and 16 April.
Senior additional advocate General B A Dar on behalf of thegovernment submitted that the election meetings and the training of the pollstaff would not be possible without having the said premises.
He further pleaded that filing of the writ petition was necessitatedto ensure security of the participants in these meetings.
Dar drew attention of the court to an order it has passed onMarch 13, 2018 and October 9, 2018 in APPIL 9 /2017 in PIL no 20 of 2014 andAPPIL 4 of 2018 titled Shambu Nath versus state and others where permissionshad been granted for organising Dusshera festival and independence/republic daycelebrations in playgrounds.
After hearing Dar, the bench accepted the prayer. “Wetherefore hereby permit conducting of the public meetings of the candidates aswell as training of the election staff between 14 to 16 April in the IndoorSports Stadium Srinagar and allow the writ petitioner to consider theapplications for the same”.