Chandigarh, Feb 20 (IANS): Ahead of the farmers groups' call for a protest march to the national capital over their demands, the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Tuesday slammed them for camping at Shambhu border with hundreds of tractors, saying tractor-trailers can’t be used on highways.

A bench of acting Chief Justice G.S. Sandhawalia and Justice Lapita Banerji questioned the Punjab government for allowing the assembly of farmers in such large numbers.

"According to the Motor Vehicle Act, you can’t use tractor-trolleys on the highway. You are travelling from Amritsar to Delhi on trolleys," the bench remarked.

Justice Sandhawalia orally asked the state government to ensure that protestors are not gathered in large numbers as "they have right to protest but it is subjected to reasonable restrictions".

During the hearing, he also objected to farmers travelling in tractors and trolleys for protest.

The court was hearing a public interest litigation, moved by advocate Uday Pratap Singh, who said the road blockade is not only causing inconvenience to residents but also hindrance in the movement of ambulance, school buses and pedestrians since February 13.