THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE K.C.BHANU WRIT PETITION No.29199 OF 2011 Dated: 21.12.2011 Between: Visalandhra Mahasabha ..... Petitioner AND Government of Andhra Pradesh and 4 others ..... Respondents The Court made the following: THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE K.C.BHANU WRIT PETITION No.29199 OF 2011 ORDER: This Writ Petition is filed seeking to issue Writ of Mandamus declaring the action of the 1st respondent in cancelling the allotment of Jubilee Hall to Visaalandhra Mahasabha through fax message No.473/GH-II/2011-1, dated 21.01.2011 and that of the 4th respondent in instructing to defer the Media Workshop and Exhibition scheduled to be held on 22nd and 23rd October, 2011 to a later date, and thereby resulting in the cancellation of the programme, as arbitrary and illegal, with a further direction to the respondents to allow the petitioner to hold Media Workshop and exhibition on 05.11.2011 and 06.11.2011 by directing respondent Nos.1 and 5 to reserve Jubilee Hall, Hyderabad to the petitioner for the said purpose and also respondent Nos.2, 3 and 4 not to cause any obstruction to the petitioner. 2. The petitioner is an organisation founded to promote unity, peace, culture and harmony among the people of Andhra Pradesh. It has been conducting various programmes in various parts of the country for promotion of its ideology and in that process, it has decided to organise a Media Workshop and Exhibition in Hyderabad also. Accordingly, the petitioner had sought reservation of Jubilee Hall and the same has been permitted by the 1st respondent through its Memo vide No.464/GHII/2011, dated 19.10.2011. However, in view of the threats from some groups and trying to suppress its fundamental right to express its views, through a letter dated 20.10.2011, the petitioner had requested the 4th respondent to provide adequate security so as to run the workshop and exhibition smoothly. In the meanwhile, the petitioner received a fax message on 21.10.2011 from the 1st respondent addressed to the 5th respondent, a copy of which is marked to the petitioner, informing that the allotment of Jubilee Hall in favour of the petitioner on 22.10.2011 and 23.10.2011 is cancelled. Subsequently, another fax has been received from the 4th respondent instructing to defer the proposed media workshop and exhibition to a later date. Though the petitioner sought for allotment of Jubilee Hall on 5th and 6th of November, 2011, there has been no response from the Government till date and the respondents have returned the cheque given towards reservation of the Hall. Aggrieved by the same, the petitioner has filed the present writ petition. 3. A detailed counter affidavit has been filed by the 4th respondent stating that the petitioner had submitted a representation dated 27.10.2011 to the 1st respondent for allotment of Jubilee Hall to Visaalandhra Mahasabha on 5th and 6th of November, 2011 for conducting a media work shop and exhibition promoting the unity and integrity of Andhra Pradesh. On receipt of the representation, the 1st respondent vide its Memo No.486/GH-II/2011-1, dated 01.11.2011 requested the Commissioner of Police, Hyderabad to offer his views on the representation of the petitioner. Accordingly, after conducting detailed enquiry, a report was submitted to the 1st respondent- Government by the Commissioner of Police, Hyderabad vide his proceedings No.L&O/M4/4713/2011, dated 08.11.2011, stating that two workshops have already been conducted one at Vijayawada on 07.08.2011 and the other at Hyderabad on 11.10.2011. These meetings were extremely effective in provocating regional sentiments of high dimension resulting in the disruption of law and order in the society. It is further stated that any occurrence of small explosive incident in such meetings, does have diabolic effect of flaring up regional sentiments of dangerous proportions. Thus, any further meetings of this type shall certainly create law and order problems beyond control causing huge irreparable loss to public lives and property, besides the police manpower and resources are overstretched to unprecedented extent. Thus, any further stress is beyond the endurances of the law enforcing agency. Keeping in view of the above facts, the Commissioner of Police, Hyderabad City requested the 1st respondent-Government that permission to such workshops that provocate regional sentiments may be denied. 4. Learned counsel for the petitioner contended that on several occasions, the Jubilee Hall is being given to the private persons and on the ground that there will be law and order problem, the permission cannot be cancelled. The petitioner also contended that there is a difference between law and order and public order and for the purpose of law and order, the cancellation of permission cannot be done. Hence, he prays to allow the writ petition. 5. On the other hand, the learned Assistant Government Pleader submitted that the cancellation was done in pursuance of the recommendations of the 3rd respondent and, therefore, in view of the law and order problem, the permission granted was recalled. 6. Originally, permission was granted to the petitioner for the purpose of organising the media work shop and exhibition through proceedings dated 19.10.2011, subject to payment of certain charges. Subsequently, through fax message dated 21.10.2011, the said permission was cancelled without assigning any reasons. The Jubilee Hall is given to private organisations for conducting various programmes and cancelling the permission to the petitioner is nothing but denying equal justice to the petitioner. This Court directed the Government Pleader to verify whether any procedure is contemplated for allotment of Jubilee Hall to the private persons. 7. Pursuant to the said directions of this Court, the Assistant Government Pleader had produced before this Court G.O.Ms.No.128, dated 05.03.1975. The relevant portion of which reads as under: “The Jubilee Hall in the Public Gardens at Hyderabad is solely intended for holding important functions and conferences of Government. It was, however, being made available on a rental of Rs.100/- per day to certain private organisations in which the Government are indirectly interested, and to Public Sector Undertakings. Considering the present high cost of maintenance of the Jubilee Hall and after careful consideration of the need for charging enhanced rent, the Government have decided as follows: (a) Ordinarily the Jubilee Hall will not be available to private parties or organisations for their use and the Government reserve the right to refuse permission to use Jubilee Hall and the furniture to organisations which do not have any Governmental Association whatsoever. (b) The Public Sector Undertakings and the Government of India Undertakings shall be treated as private companies for purposes of rental for the use of the Jubilee Hall. (c) When the Hall or its annexe is made available in special cases to private organisations for holding functions, Conferences, etc., in which Government are also interested indirectly, rental of Rs.300/- (Rupees three hundred only) per day or part of a day should be collected in advanced and credited to the Head of Account to be ascertained from the Reception Officer, Jubilee Hall, Hyderabad. (d) Electricity charges of Rs.50/- per day should also be collected in advance. (e) Private parties shall not be allowed to take the furniture for use outside the Jubilee Hall. (f) The rates of furniture used in the Jubilee Hall shall be as shown in the Annexure to this order. This order issues with the concurrence of the Finance Department conveyed in their U.O.No.408/DFS/(A/Cs) P/75-1, dated 5th March, 1975. (By Order and in the Name of the Governor of Andhra Pradesh) 8. From the above G.O., it is clear that ordinarily the Jubilee Hall will not be available to the private persons for their use and the Government reserves the right to refuse permission to use it. Therefore, the petitioner must show that the extraordinary circumstances under which the Jubilee Hall can be given to the private persons on payment of charges. There are no such extraordinary circumstances pleaded in the writ petition so as to give Jubilee Hall to the petitioner for conducting the media and exhibition Workshop. The allegation that on earlier occasions, the Jubilee Hall was made available to certain private persons is not a ground to grant permission. Even assuming for a moment that the Jubilee Hall was made available to certain private persons, the same do not confer any right to the petitioner for allotment of the same for the purpose for which he wanted it. Even if a private person is given permission, it would be in contravention of G.O.Ms.No.128, dated 05.03.1975. In view of the above G.O., the petitioner is not entitled for allotment of Jubilee Hall on different grounds and hence, the permission was recalled. 9. For the foregoing reasons, the Writ Petition is devoid of merits and it is accordingly dismissed. There shall be no order as to costs. _____________ K.C.BHANU, J Dated: 21st December, 2011 Ivd THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE K.C.BHANU WRIT PETITION No.29199 OF 2011 21st December, 2011 Ivd