Many lawyers came together at the Supreme Court lawn today (January 7, 2020) to read out the Preamble of the Constitution in unison. They dispersed soon after reading the Preamble. One of the lawyers told us that this was necessary for upholding the constitutional values and reminding the judiciary that this is our Constitution.
This came in light with reference to the protests following the passing of the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019.
Earlier, a group of lawyers gathered at the Madras High Court gathered to read out the preamble, as a part of the protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019.
Numerous petitions have been filed challenging various aspects of the highly controversial legislation which are pending before the Apex Court. The Coram of judges, led by Chief Justice of India SA Bobde is due to take up the matter later this month.
The chain of events that has prompted the national debate concerns violence in universities. Petitions have been filed alleging brutality by the Police on students of Jamia Milia Islamia and Aligarh Muslim University before the Apex Court.
Nevertheless, the Court has refused to take up the matter on an urgent basis and directed that these petitions should be taken up by the respective jurisdictional courts. Last weekend, armed persons entered the Jawaharlal Nehru University Campus and attacked the students.
Author: Swetalana Rout
