Mumbai, Dec 12 (Reporter) The Bombay High Court on Thursday asked the Mahayuti government if there was any restriction on celebrating the birth anniversary of Tipu Sultan of Mysore in Maharashtra. A division bench, comprising Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Shivkumar Dige raised the query during the hearing of a plea filed by All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) Pune president Faiyaz Shaikh challenging the refusal of permission by Pune Rural Police to carry out a procession to commemorate the birth anniversaries of Tipu Sultan and Bharat Ratna Maulana Abul Kalam Azad along with the Constitution Day celebrations at Baramati in Pune district. The Pune Rural Police declined permission for the events, particularly Tipu Sultan’s birth anniversary, directing Shaikh not to celebrate it publicly but choose a private place for his rally. The police argument was that it had received representations from another community apprehending law-and-order problems if the AIMIM rally was given the go-ahead. The court asked the Additional Public Prosecutor Kranti Hivrale, who responded in the negative but reiterated that if such a rally was allowed it could lead to a law-and-order scenario. The judges noted that the law-and-order is the police jurisdiction but said that if the rally could not be allowed in a particular area on the grounds of security, the organisers could have been asked to change the route, and if they flouted the rules, they could face police action. When APP Hivrale sought time on this, the judges directed Pune (Rural) superintendent of police Pankaj Deshmukh to remain present virtually and he clarified that the objection was only pertaining to the rally for marking Tipu Sultan’s birth anniversary. At this, the court pointed out that the permission sought was not solely for Tipu Sultan's birthday commemoration but also for the Constitution Day and Maulana Azad’s birth anniversary last month. “You decide the route for them, but you cannot ask them to celebrate it at their own place… There is no reason why they cannot be allowed to take out the procession,” said Justice Ms Mohite-Dere. She made it clear that the law-and-order cannot be the ground for denial of permission but if the organisers used objectionable language or committed any offence then the police are free to act against them. The court has now posted the matter for further hearing on December 17 to enable the petitioner Shaikh personally meet Deshmukh and finalise the details of where and how the commemoration rally can be taken out...////...