Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament Manoj Kumar Jha has approached the Supreme Court seeking directions for registration of First Information Reports (FIRs) against police personnel accused of using excessive force against students participating in nationwide protests over the alleged NEET-UG paper leak between July 20 and 25.
The matter was mentioned before the Bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana by Advocate Fauzia Shakil, which directed that the matter would be heard along with the batch of petitions concerning alleged police excesses during the NEET protest demonstrations on July 28.
The counsel appearing for the petitioner apprised the Court that the plea contained comprehensive material relating to the alleged incidents of police excesses, including the police firing in Bihar.
The writ petition, filed through Advocate-on-Record Ujjwal Singh, referred to the incident in Bihar’s Siwan district, where three protesters were injured after police allegedly opened fire during the “Bihar Bandh” called by the All India Students’ Association (AISA). The bandh was organised to protest the alleged NEET paper leak, and demonstrations reportedly turned violent in several parts of the State.
Jha sought directions to all States and Union Territories to register FIRs wherever allegations of police brutality or disproportionate use of force against peaceful protesters are disclosed, particularly in relation to incidents that occurred between July 20 and July 25, including the police action at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on July 20.
The petition also sought the constitution of Special Investigation Teams (SITs) in the respective States and Union Territories to investigate allegations of police excesses. According to the plea, each SIT should comprise the Director General of Police and two senior women Indian Police Service (IPS) officers not below the rank of Inspector General of Police.
It further prayed that each investigation should be conducted under the guidance of a retired High Court judge and monitored by the Supreme Court to ensure impartiality, with the inquiry to be completed within three months.
The petitioner has also sought directions for preservation of videos circulating on social media that allegedly depict disproportionate use of police force during the protests. It further seeks identification of all police personnel deployed during the demonstrations, including officers allegedly operating in plain clothes.
In addition, the plea sought the preservation and disclosure of all official records relating to the police action, including orders issued under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS), communications refusing permission for the proposed “Chalo Sansad” march in Delhi, operational and deployment plans, crowd dispersal warnings, CCTV footage, drone recordings, body-camera footage, police videography, barricading plans, designated exit routes, authorisations permitting the use of tear gas, lathi-charge, detention or arrest, as well as records identifying injured protesters and police personnel together with their medical and medico-legal reports.
The petition further sought a writ of mandamus directing all States and Union Territories to initiate both criminal prosecution and departmental disciplinary proceedings against police personnel found responsible for unlawful or excessive use of force. It also seeks compensation and reimbursement of medical expenses for victims who allegedly suffered injuries during the police action.
Apart from seeking investigation into allegations of police brutality, the petition requests directions requiring States and Union Territories to disclose the number of FIRs registered against students who participated in protests between July 20 and July 25, along with details of the accused persons and the penal provisions invoked in each case.
The plea also sought directions restraining authorities from documenting, intimidating, threatening or arbitrarily detaining students solely for participating in peaceful demonstrations.
Further, the petitioner has sought the formulation of pan-India guidelines and uniform Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) governing police use of force during public demonstrations.
The proposed framework seeks to ensure that law enforcement agencies use only the minimum force necessary while dealing with unarmed protesters, mandate audio-visual recording of all crowd-control operations, require police personnel to wear proper uniforms and visible name badges, provide for immediate medical examination of persons allegedly injured during police action along with preservation of medico-legal records, ensure periodic training of police personnel on handling peaceful demonstrations, particularly those involving women and children, and require that all complaints alleging police brutality be investigated by an independent Special Investigation Team.
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