74. Co-operation between Special Branch and divisional police regarding public meetings. (Section 3, Bengal Act II of 1866) (Section 9, Bengal Act IV of 1866). - (a) The divisional police and the Special Branch shall keep each other informed of the intention of members of the public to hold meetings, either indoor or open-air. The Special Branch shall also invariably inform the divisional police whether or not it will depute Government reporters and/or Special Branch officers to take notes of the speeches delivered at a meeting.
(b)If a meeting is considered sufficiently important, the Deputy Commissioner, Special Branch., shall depute Government reporters and/ or Special Branch Officers duly authorised with an order in the form shown in Appendix to take notes of the speeches delivered at the meeting. In such cases officers of the police station need not take notes as the details of speeches made at the meeting will be conveyed to the Commissioner, the divisional Deputy Commissioner and other authorities by the Deputy Commissioner, Special Branch.(c)In cases in which the Special Branch does not intend to send any officer or reporter to attend a meeting, it shall advise the officer-in-charge of the police station within whose jurisdiction the meeting is to be held, to go himself or to depute a Sub-Inspector, to take notes of the speeches made at the meeting and to submit a report about the proceedings of the meeting to his Deputy Commissioner. In the absence of any such advice, the Officer-in-charge shall take such action as he may think fit.(d)Uniformed police shall be deputed by the divisional police, on requisition from the Special Branch, to protect reporters or officers recording speeches at a meeting.(e)Responsibility of divisional police. - Nothing in the foregoing regulations shall be read as restricting in any way the responsibility of the divisional police for the maintenance of law and order at public meetings and the responsibility of the Officers-in-charge of the police station within the local limits of which the meeting is held for making arrangements to prevent any breach of the peace and for passing such legal orders as are necessary to control the meeting.
