Supreme Court Quashes FIRs Against Student Protesters, CJP Calls Off September 5 March.
New Delhi:
The Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the quashing of FIRs registered across the country against students who participated in protests between July 20 and 25, bringing major relief to student demonstrators facing criminal cases over their participation in the agitation.
A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohana, invoked the court’s extraordinary powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to bring the criminal proceedings against the protesters to an end.
The court, however, excluded individuals who were already facing cases involving heinous offences and permitted the police to continue proceedings against 2,873 persons with serious criminal antecedents.
The Bench said that the decision had been taken in the “peculiar facts and circumstances” of the matter and made it clear that the order would not constitute a binding precedent for other cases.
Court stresses right to peaceful protest
While passing the order, the Supreme Court observed that merely participating in a protest does not amount to a criminal offence.
The Bench noted that the young protesters had participated in a peaceful demonstration to voice their demands and said their future prospects had to be kept in mind while considering the criminal cases arising from the protests.
“Keeping in view the future prospects of the young protesters who came to participate in a peaceful protest to raise their voice in support of certain demands, we deem it appropriate to invoke our powers under Article 142 of the Constitution in order to do complete justice between the parties,” the court said.
The order came after the Centre and the governments of Maharashtra, Bihar, West Bengal and Assam requested the Supreme Court to exercise its powers under Article 142 and close the cases against student protesters.
CJP withdraws September 5 protest march
Following the court’s intervention, Saurav Das, co-convener of the CJP, announced that the organisation would withdraw its proposed September 5 march from India Gate to the Police Headquarters in New Delhi.
Das made the announcement before the Bench after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court that the Centre remained committed to assurances given to CJP leaders in July, including the withdrawal of cases against student protesters.
Das told the court that, in view of the government’s statement and the judicial order, CJP had decided to call off the proposed march and would now await implementation of the court’s directions.
He also thanked the Bench and the lawyers who represented the matter, including advocate Vrinda Grover and the Solicitor General.
Mehta responded that the statement satisfied the government and said he trusted Das.
After the hearing, Das described the Supreme Court’s order as “historic.”
Cases linked to July protests
The issue dates back to the 36-day agitation led by CJP over alleged irregularities and malpractices in the conduct of the NEET and other examinations.
Withdrawal of criminal cases against student protesters was among the principal demands made by the organisation when it agreed to call off its agitation on July 25.
CJP later alleged that the assurances given by the Centre had not been implemented and announced the September 5 march to press its demands.
The Supreme Court’s Tuesday order effectively addresses one of the organisation’s central grievances.
2,873 people excluded from blanket relief
The court’s relief is not applicable to everyone booked in connection with the protests.
The Solicitor General had earlier told the Bench that individuals with serious criminal records had allegedly infiltrated the July 20 protest. According to the government’s submission, 240 police personnel were injured during the demonstration.
The government identified 2,873 individuals against whom serious cases involving offences such as murder, rape and abduction were pending.
The Supreme Court therefore allowed the police to proceed against these individuals while extending relief to other student protesters.
FIRs from several states brought within order
The scope of the proceedings was also expanded after lawyers pointed out that student protesters had been booked not only in the states initially before the court but also in Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
The Solicitor General agreed to broaden the proposed relief to cover FIRs registered against student protesters anywhere in the country, subject to the exclusions laid down by the court.
The Centre had on Monday itself urged the Supreme Court to use Article 142 to quash the FIRs, saying that the cases against genuine student protesters could be closed while investigations involving alleged anti-social elements and serious offenders could continue.
NEET paper leak victims’ families to receive compensation
In another significant direction, the Supreme Court ordered the Centre to provide compensation within three months to the families of students who died by suicide in connection with the NEET paper-leak controversy.
The direction came amid the wider dispute surrounding alleged irregularities in the NEET examination process and the protests that followed.
Facial recognition challenge unaffected
The Bench also clarified that its directions would be without prejudice to the pending constitutional challenge concerning the police’s use of facial recognition technology.
The court’s decision to close the FIRs was specifically tied to the circumstances of the present matter and was not intended to settle broader legal questions concerning protest policing, criminal procedure or the constitutional validity of facial-recognition practices.
The Supreme Court’s order consequently provides immediate relief to a large number of student protesters while allowing authorities to continue action against individuals facing allegations of serious criminal offences.
