Maharashtra to withdraw entry ban for 8 Barsu-Solgaon refinery protesters in Ratnagiri villages
The orders had also restricted them from posting anything on social media that ‘may create confusion’ and ‘incite a law and order situation in the area’.
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Police in action against villagers in Barsu during a protest against the proposed petrochemical refinery project in the area, at Rajapur taluka in Ratnagiri district, Friday, April 28, 2023. (PTI/File Photo) The Maharashtra government told the Bombay High Court on Thursday that it will immediately withdraw the orders prohibiting eight residents from entering their villages in Ratnagiri or putting up social media posts against the proposed Barsu refinery project in the district.
Through two orders dated April 22 and April 25, the government prohibited eight persons from entering their villages till May 31 under section 144 (2) of the Criminal Procedure Code. The order also put restrictions on them from publishing any post on social media “which may create confusion and which may incite a law and order situation in the area”, the petition said.
The eight residents then approached the high court with a petition citing that the orders were passed against them “for legitimately exercising their fundamental right” to protest against the proposed location of the Ratnagiri Refinery Petrochemicals Ltd in Rajapur.
The prosecutor representing the state government made a statement about the withdrawal of the orders before the division bench of Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Sharmila Deshmukh on Thursday, following which the court disposed of the petition filed by the residents.
Local environmental activists and residents have been protesting the refinery project in the Konkan region, fearing pollution and damage to the region, which is largely dependent on agriculture and famous for the cultivation of Alphonso mangoes.
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