The Centre is set to move the Supreme Court seeking the quashing of FIRs registered against student protesters by invoking the Court’s extraordinary powers under Article 142 of the Constitution.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta mentioned the matter before Chief Justice of India Surya Kant shortly before the Bench rose for the day, seeking an urgent listing on the following day.
Asked about the application, Mehta clarified that it sought to quash FIRs related to the protests using Article 142. CJI Kant allowed the filing, stating the court had no objection if the parties were reaching a reconciliation.
The move comes ahead of a protest march announced by the Cockroach Janata Party in Delhi on September 5. The party has alleged that the Centre failed to fulfil its commitment to withdraw cases against protesters involved in the nationwide July demonstrations over the exam-paper leak issue. Withdrawal of the cases was among the conditions set by the party for ending the student protests on July 25.
During a hearing on August 18, the Supreme Court had indicated that it was inclined to quash the FIRs under Article 142. The Court was informed that withdrawing the cases through the ordinary legal process posed difficulties because, once an FIR is registered, the police must file a closure report before the concerned Magistrate, who may reject it.
At the previous hearing, the Solicitor General submitted that cases could be quashed for all but 2,873 individuals accused of serious offences, including murder, rape and abduction.
Submitting before the bench, SG Mehta stated that the criminal cases against the student protesters ought to be quashed via an appropriate judicial order, provided that anti-social actors who infiltrated the event remain subject to thorough investigation.
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