Kerala High Court Criticizes Political Parties for Sudden Hartal in Landslide-Affected Wayanad

On Friday, the Kerala High Court expressed strong disapproval of the flash hartals (strikes) called by the United Democratic Front (UDF) and Left Democratic Front (LDF) in Wayanad on November 19. The political parties organized the strikes to protest the delay in receiving financial assistance from the central government for ongoing rehabilitation efforts in the landslide-hit region.
While addressing the issue, justices AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and Syam Kumar VM criticized the sudden strikes as counterproductive and detrimental to the public interest. The Bench remarked, “It is alarming that both UDF and LDF called for a hartal. This is anti-people. Despite clear court orders against them, Flash hartals like these are unacceptable. The opposition UDF, which previously stated it would not support such actions, participated in the strike. Hartals are meant to address serious injustices, but this serves no real purpose. It does not address the disaster or the larger issue at hand. Calling for a hartal because the Centre is not providing funds is utterly unreasonable.”
The Court also issued a warning, stressing that similar conduct would not be tolerated in the future. “Please inform the government and political parties that such conduct will not be allowed. All parties seem to unite when it comes to actions that harm the people. This conduct is deeply distressing,” Justice Nambiar added.
The case was being heard in connection with the Court’s suo motu proceedings to monitor disaster relief in Wayanad, which has yet to recover from the devastating landslides on July 30. In previous hearings, the Court had raised concerns regarding delays in the disbursement of funds from the Central government to support Kerala’s rehabilitation efforts.
The central government explained that releasing funds from the National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF) typically requires a post-disaster assessment and inspection, which was still underway in Wayanad. The government also suggested that Kerala utilize the surplus remaining in its State Disaster Relief Fund (SDRF), which includes contributions from the Centre, to provide immediate relief.
Both the State and amicus curiae had opposed this stance, noting that NDRF funds had been released to other states without similar assessments, and thus, Kerala should not be subject to delays.
In response to these concerns, the Central government submitted an affidavit confirming that, after a high-level meeting on November 16, financial assistance of ₹153.467 crore had been approved by the NDRF. This amount will be adjusted against the remaining SDRF funds. Additionally, funds have been approved to airdrop essential supplies and clear debris in Wayanad.
The affidavit also mentioned that Kerala’s Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) had estimated the total reconstruction cost at ₹2,219.03 crore. However, the final report on the assessment was only submitted to the Centre on November 13.
The matter is scheduled for further hearing on December 6. Senior Advocate Ranjith Thampan appeared as amicus curiae, while Advocate Suvin R Menon represented the Central government in the case.