The Supreme Court has asked the Centre to take action against those who indulge in violence during bandhs.
A bench comprising Justice Doraiswamy Raju and Justice Arijit Pasayat gave this judgment while acquitting two persons of murder charges.
The two had fired upon some strikers who had attacked them for not closing down their factory in Kochi, Kerala, during a nationwide bandh on March 15, 1998.
Justice Pasayat, writing the judgment, said in the name of bandh no person had the right to cause inconvenience to any other person or to cause in any manner a threat or apprehension of risk to life, liberty, property of any citizen or destruction of life and property, on the least any government or public property.
"It is high time that the authorities concerned take serious note of this requirement while dealing with those who destroy public property in the name of strike, hartal or bandh," he said.
"Unless such acts are controlled with iron hands, innocent citizens are bound to suffer and they shall be the victims of the highhanded acts of some fanatics with queer notions of democracy and freedom of speech or association," the court warned.
It said unless those who organise strikes or similar activities were confident of controlling any problems, they should think twice about organising such events.
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