The Supreme Court has slammed the lathicharge of students during the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protests in Delhi. The top court made the remarks on Monday stating that the right to peaceful protest is "absolutely guaranteed" under the Constitution.
A bench led by CJI Surya Kant took up a batch of petitions against alleged police brutality on students during the July 20 'Sansad Chalo' march. "The right to peaceful, lawful protest is absolutely guaranteed under the Constitution. So long as it is peaceful agitation, merely because there is agitation, there can't be lathicharge," SC observed.
On July 20, when the march turned violent, the police personnel resorted to lathicharge and tear gas shelling to disperse the crowd. The crowd resorted to stone pelting and vandalism. As many as 118 cops and over 60 protestors sustained injuries.
The pleas sought compensation for those who suffered injuries, preservation of CCTV footage, body-camera recordings and separate probe in the incidents.
CJI Kant Calls For Protocol Governing Peaceful Protests Across India
The CJI added that there should be a protocol governing peaceful protests across the country.
"There should be a protocol when someone wants to agitate peacefully. Proper space for that. There is no impediment in that regard. But if there is any anti-social element that can be dealt with," the CJI said.
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Rahul Gandhi Writes To Amit Shah
Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Sunday questioned Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the use of force against students asking, "Who gave the order to kill the students?"
Sharing a letter addressed to Shah on X, Rahul Gandhi demanded accountability for what he described as a "barbaric assault" on students who were peacefully protesting.
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"Our students were demanding a fair and accountable education system. Instead of being heard, security forces assaulted them with indiscriminate force, including lethal weapons and tear gas. Hundreds have suffered serious injuries. Hundreds have suffered serious injuries. Women students have been assaulted by policemen, including by deliberately targeting their private parts," Congress leader Gandhi said in the letter.
"Most shocking has been the use of lethal pellet guns. Reports in the media and social media clearly show people who have suffered grave injuries, including a journalist. I met 19-year old student Sahil Lochab, who is now in severe pain and is likely to lose an eye because he was shot with pellet guns," he said.