Mumbai, July 3 -- The Bombay High Court on Thursday, July 2, held that a person cannot be externed, or banished from a city, simply for organising protests against government decisions, and that doing so violates the fundamental right to free speech and the right to live with dignity.

Justice Madhav J Jamdar quashed an externment order issued against Saeed Ahmad Abdul Wahid Chaudhary, secretary of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), holding that police had no evidence to show that his activities caused, or were likely to cause, alarm, danger or harm to the public.

The court set aside the externment order passed on December 3, 2025, by the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Zone-6, Chembur, as well as an appellate order dated March ...