“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.” – George Orwell.

The Tripura HC in a recent judgment, in the case of Tripura People’s Front Vs State Of Tripura., observed that Once a National Highway has been blocked in the form of an assembly, it amounts to violation of Section 8B of the National Highway Act and hence no claim of immunity under Article 19(1)(a)(b) of the Constitution of India can be made.

The petitioners in the instant matter protested the killing of a FireFighter by some political groups by first calling a bandh and again on 25.11.2020, they had assembled on the National Highway to protest and subsequently had blocked the Highway. They protested during the Covid period, due to which Police registered several FIRs in several Police Stations under Sections 34, 143, 145, 149, 151, 157, 186, 188, 269, 270, 283, 341, 353, 436, 506, IPC read with Section 8-B of the National Highway Act, 1956 and also under various sections of Disaster Management Act 2005, Epidemic Diseases Act 1987, Tripura Police Act, 2007 and Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984. The petitioners challenged the proceedings.

A bench composed of Acting Chief Justice TA Goud & Justice Arindam Lodh,  observed, “In view of the said restrictions, Section 8B of the National Highway Act comes into play. Whether any violence has taken place and whether it was an unlawful assembly is immaterial but once the National Highway itself has been blocked by the petitioners it amounts to a clear violation of Section 8B of the National Highway Act and the petitioners cannot claim immunity under Article 19(1)(a)(b) of the Constitution of India.” It is pertinent to note that fundamental rights are not absolute in nature; they all come with reasonable restrictions.