New Delhi: The Supreme Court has commented on the Delhi Police’s heavy-handed lathi-charge against protesting students during a march to Parliament held on July 20 under the banner of CJP. On Monday, the Court strongly criticised the lathi-charge carried out against protesters during the agitation, stating that a lathi-charge cannot be justified solely because a protest is taking place.
A bench led by Justice Surya Kant made these observations when petitions regarding the use of force against protesters in various parts of the country were mentioned before it. One of these petitions was filed by a group of students who alleged that the police had assaulted them during the protest. Protests demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan were underway in several cities across the country, and police had resorted to lathi-charges in these instances.
Rifles Aimed at Protesters in Siwan
A petition filed in the Supreme Court alleged that AK-47 rifles were used against protesters in Siwan, Bihar. The Court stated that there should be an independent inquiry into allegations of indiscriminate or excessive use of force by the police. A lawyer, who had previously written to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court demanding a high-level inquiry into the unjust police action against protesters at Jantar Mantar, has now filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on the same issue. Notably, the Chief Justice had not taken cognisance of the letter sent three days earlier.
Demand to Preserve Evidence
In the PIL filed in the Supreme Court by Advocate Narendra Mishra on behalf of petitioner Priya Mishra, a request was made for the Court to issue a writ of mandamus directing the respondents. The petition also sought a directive to immediately secure and preserve all electronic and digital evidence related to the incidents in question.
These include CCTV footage, body-worn camera footage, drone footage, mobile phone recordings, videos and posts available on social media, police wireless and communication records, call logs, control room records, deployment orders, GPS records, and all other relevant electronic and documentary evidence.
The petition further seeks to prevent this evidence from being destroyed, altered, or tampered with. It urges that steps be taken to ensure all evidence is presented before the appropriate judicial and investigative authorities.
Students had staged a protest
Students across the country had launched a major protest against the NEET paper leak. A large number of students from all over the nation participated in the demonstration at Jantar Mantar in Delhi. Ultimately, on July 25, 2026, the Education Minister resigned from his post, citing moral grounds. The government accepted all the students’ demands, following which the decision to call off the protest was announced.
