ASHOK BHUSHAN, J. :

” This bunch of writ petitions have been listed before the Full Bench on a reference made by a Division Bench of this Court. The Division Bench took the view that the issues raised in the writ petitions are of public importance, hence they require to be heard by a Full Bench.

2. This bunch of writ petitions highlights the grievance and suffering by common people of the State, on whom by the call of observing hartal by different political and organizations forces closure of all their activities, including respective businesses and vocations. The petitioners” grievances are compounded by not taking appropriate action and measures by the State, who is obliged to secure lives and properties of members of the society. The grievance is that in spite of two Full Benches of this Court having declared ' bandh” and ' forced hartal” unconstitutional, the political parties and various organizations are giving call for hartals and prosecuting their calls, which are nothing but forced hartals. Some of the petitioners, for example, petitioners in W.P.(C) No. 32529 of 2007, W.P.(C). No. 2183 of 2008 and W.P.(C). No. 21455 of 2012, who are aggrieved by failure of the State authorities to ensure normal functioning of the people in bandhs and forced hartals, have come with the prayer for restraining the print and electronic media from publishing any news regarding call of hartals given by political parties and different organizations.

3. In bunch of these writ petitions several prayers have been made by different petitioners giving relevant facts and details. Counter-affidavits by some political parties, the State Government and other respondents have been filed. For noticing the issues raised before the Full Bench and the pleadings of the parties it is sufficient to note the pleadings and reliefs in all the writ petitions. We now proceed to note the facts and issues brought on record in above writ petitions for deciding the bunch of writ petitions.

4. W.P.(C). No. 32529 of 2007 has been filed by the petitioner, who claims to be working as the Principal of an educational institution affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education. The writ petition has been instituted seeking orders restraining publication or broadcasting of calls for bandh or hartal by political parties and other organizations. The petitioner by refering to two Full Bench judgments of this Court as noted above pleaded that in spite of various directions issued by the Full Bench of this Court, the State Government machinery did not do anything to mitigate the sufferings of the common people on the day of bandh/hartal. It is pleaded that on the days of hartal, an uncontrollable situation had arisen wherein self proclaimed violators of law, started holding the public to ransom in the name of hartal and bandh. The petitioner pleads that the root cause of enforcing a call for bandh/hartal is the wide circulation, propaganda and importance given to the same by news papers, television and radio. This is so, in view of the fact that once political party decides to call for a bandh/hartal, all they have to do is to convey the decision to the respective newspaper/television and once the news is flashed, people remain within their homes, fearing adverse consequences, if they violate the call for bandh, as is proved by past experiences, which inter alia amounts to aiding/abetting the call for bandh/hartal. The petitioner has impleaded representatives of television channels and newspapers operating in the State of Kerala. Representatives of political parties are also impleaded in the writ petition. The petitioner has also pleaded that Norms of Journalistic Conduct have been framed under the Press Council Act, 1978 and going by the said Regulation, vis-a-vis, the declarations of this Court and the Supreme Court, the petitioner pleads that newspapers ought not publish any call for bandh/hartal by any political party or group, since such action would directly