West Bengal yatra: SC to hear BJP's plea on Jan 8

The Supreme Court will on January 8 hear the BJP's plea against the Calcutta High Court's order on party's yatra in West Bengal.

Last month, the BJP moved the vacation bench of the Apex Court against the order of the high court's division bench which restricted the party from holding yatra in West Bengal.

The division bench had earlier quashed the order of a single bench allowing the BJP to hold yatra in the state.

The Mamata Banerjee-led state government has been protesting against the proposed yatra citing intelligence reports of possible communal violence in areas where the BJP has planned the rallies.

"The areas proposed to be covered by the yatra are, because of publicity and propaganda gradually turning into communally sensitive pockets. Intelligence reports indicate that public perception is that the religious overtones of the Yatra will be turned into propaganda," a letter from the state government reads.

The government also claimed that the yatra may trigger communal violence in several districts due to the participation of the RSS, Bajrang Dal and the VHP.