In a recent court decision, Judge N.V. Shravan Kumar addressed a request about holding the Bhathukamma Festival at a sensitive location in Hyderabad. The person asking, Dr. B Uma Shankar, wanted to have the festival near the Bhagyalakshmi Ammavari Temple, Charminar, but was initially turned down by the police because of safety concerns.
Dr. B Uma Shankar applied on September 8, 2025, to hold the festival on September 23, 2025. However, the police officer in charge of Charminar turned down the request on September 11, 2025. The refusal was due to the area's sensitivity, being a place where people from different communities live and with various religious sites nearby. It was also mentioned that the Charminar area is a pedestrian zone visited by tourists, and the event could disturb public peace and traffic.
"The proposed place is sensitive... surrounded with other community worship places... and may create problems and disturbance resulting in serious threat to law and order."
Dr. Shankar's lawyer mentioned a similar situation from the previous year where the festival was allowed with certain rules. The lawyer argued that since no issues happened last time, the same decision should be made this year.
Judge N.V. Shravan Kumar listened to the arguments from both sides. The court decided to allow the festival but set strict rules to keep everyone safe and orderly:
"Participants shall not sing/raise any songs, slogans or political statements which would hurt the sentiments of other religious/political groups."
The court allowed the festival to take place under strict conditions to ensure safety and order. The police have been instructed to keep a close watch on the event and take action if any rules are broken.
