UP Goes To Supreme Court, Wants Freeze On Order To Remove "Shame" Posters

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had spoken of "badla" (revenge) against the protesters

The Yogi Adityanath government has approached the Supreme Court regarding the Allahabad High Court order for immediate removal of hoardings naming those accused of violence during protests against the controversial citizenship law. The government has sought a freeze on the High Court order. The case will be heard tomorrow.

Despite the High Court's Monday's order for immediate removal of the hoardings carrying names, photos and other personal details of the accused, the government had not complied.

The hoardings – in which some people were asked to pay for damage to public property and warned of property attachment in case of non-compliance -- were put up in various cities following the instructions of the Chief Minister, sources had said.

The judges added that they were not concerned about the compensation, but the government's "disclosure of personal details of the accused persons".

Citing the Right to Privacy as a fundamental human right recognised by the Supreme Court, the judges said that the government's move was "an unwarranted interference in privacy".

In its judgment, the court had also referred to the larger issue of the "injury caused to the precious constitutional value and its shameless depiction by the administration".

Uttar Pradesh had seen violent protests against the contentious citizenship law and a majority of the 22 people who died across the country in the protests were from the state.

Days later, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had spoken of "badla" (revenge) against the protesters, who have been "captured in video and CCTV footage".

"All properties of those involved in damaging public assets will be seized and auctioned to compensate for the losses," he had said.