A Delhi court has acquitted social activist Shabnam Hashmi and co-accused Seema Joshi in connection with alleged violations of Covid-19 lockdown protocols during a protest in Dwarka in October 2020.
After examining the evidentiary record, Judicial Magistrate First Class Divya Yadav of Dwarka Courts concluded on December 15, 2025, that the prosecution failed to establish the requisite elements of the alleged offences beyond a reasonable doubt. She pointed out the absence of Covid-19 tests on the accused and the lack of any material to indicate that they were infected or capable of transmitting the virus. The JMFC noted that the statutory criteria for Section 269 IPC were not satisfied, reinforcing the principle that penal liability for public health offences requires demonstrable causation or risk.
The court further held that the government order cited under Section 188 IPC was legally deficient. It was undated, lacked a dispatch number, and the signatures of the purported issuing authority were not substantiated, rendering the document ineffective as formal promulgation. Without a valid order, the elements of disobedience under Section 188 IPC could not be established, noted the court.
It further said that the electronic record allegedly depicting the protest was neither formally seized nor accompanied by a seizure memo. Certification under Section 65B of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, regarding the electronic evidence was unreliable, and the preparer of the CD was not examined. Furthermore, no protest materials such as banners or placards were collected, and no independent witnesses or other participants were examined to corroborate the allegations.
The court held that the prosecution had not discharged its burden of proof with respect to Sections 269, 188, and 34 IPC read with Section 3 of the Epidemic Diseases Act.
A case was registered at Dwarka South Police Station against Hashmi and others under Sections 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of a disease dangerous to life), 188 (disobedience to a duly promulgated order by a public servant), and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code, read with Section 3 of the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897.
It was alleged that the accused had participated in an unauthorised street protest without observing mandatory masking and social distancing, in contravention of a notification allegedly issued by a public authority. Such conduct posed a risk of spreading Covid-19, a disease deemed hazardous to human life and public health. Charges were formally framed in September 2023.
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