Calcutta High Court dismissed a petition filed by the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) against the Publishers and Booksellers Guild for not allowing it to set up a stall at the Calcutta Book Fair this year.
The order passed by Justice Amrita Sinha on Friday said: “There may be valid reasons for the petitioner to be aggrieved by the act of the (Publishers and Booksellers) Guild. There may be legitimate explanations of the petitioner that as they were allotted stalls for so many years, this year also stall will be allotted in their favour. The petitioners may feel that they have been wronged. All wrongs cannot be cured by the writ court. The Constitution prescribes the area where writ remedy is available....”
The order adds: “...no relief can be granted to the petitioner in the instant case. The writ petition fails and is hereby dismissed.”
The VHP had sought an order from the court asking the Guild, the organisers of the fair, to allot them a stall at the fair which will start on January 28 at Karunamoyee in Salt Lake.
“The books published by the Parishad are sensitive and controversial. The books can spread disturbance. So it has decided against allotting a stall to VHP at this year’s fair,” the lawyer appearing for the Guild said during the last hearing.
Justice Sinha said the Guild was a private organisation and the state had no role in the Book Fair.
“The case was moved under Article 226 of the Constitution. When the state curbs a fundamental right of an individual or organisation, a case can be filed in the high court. As the Guild is not a part of the state, the case does not fall under this section,” a lawyer connected with the case told Metro.
The counsel representing the VHP argued that as the state government helps the Guild hold the fair by providing various facilities, the case falls under Article 226.
The VHP will appeal against Justice Sinha’s order before a division bench, sources said.
A few weeks ago, Justice Sinha had struck down a writ petition by the Association for Protection of Democratic Rights (APDR), a human rights body, which moved court against the Guild for disallowing an APDR stall at the fair.