Uttarakhand High Court agrees to hear tomorrow plea against upcoming Mahapanchayat in Purola

The Uttarakhand High Court said on Wednesday that it will hear tomorrow a plea by NGO, Association for Protection of Civil Rights against an upcoming Mahapanchayat proposed to be organised in Purola by Hindutva organisations. .A division bench of Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Rakesh Thapliyal agreed to hear the matter after it was mentioned by advocate Shahrukh Alam. The counsel told the Court that certain organisations have given an ultimatum to a particular community to leave the area before the Mahapanchayat. Alam added that there is urgency in the matter and the Supreme Court also granted the petitioner the liberty to approach the High Court. .Earlier today, the plea was mentioned before the Supreme Court in the morning. However, the vacation bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Ahsanuddin Amanullah asked the petitioner to approach the High Court first and also said that the petitioner should repose trust in High Court."Why this distrust of the High Court? They also have jurisdiction. You should have some trust. Why this short circuiting, we are not on merits or cause. Why do you distrust the administration?"The petitioner then withdrew the plea which was allowed with liberty to move the High Court.According to reports, tensions escalated in the State after two youths, one Hindu and other Muslim, were accused of abducting a minor Hindu girl.The incident happened on May 26 and on the same day, the accused were sent to custody. Police have invoked various sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012 against the accused..The mahapanchayat is set to take place tomorrow in Purola (a small town in Uttarkashi district) amid continuing communal tension.Two letter petitions have also been moved by Hindi scholars Ashok Vajpeyi and Apoorvanand and the Peoples Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) asking the Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Uttarakhand High Court Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi to prevent the mahapanchayat. According to the petitioners, if it is allowed to continue, it would worsen the communal tensions."We submit this petition to draw your immediate attention to the alarming rise of hate speech, vigilantism, and targeted communal violence against the minority Muslim community in Uttarakhand and to request you to kindly direct the state government of Uttarakhand and the concerned authorities to take immediate measures to redress violent hate campaign," a letter petition stated.