Demolitions And Arbitrary Arrests In UP: Former Supreme Court, High Court Judges Appeal To CJI To Take Immediate Suo Motu Cognizance

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They say in their letter-appeal that the “mettle of judiciary is tested in such critical time.”

India Tomorrow

NEW DELHI—A group of 12 retired judges of the Supreme and high courts as well as senior advocates have appealed to Supreme Court chief justice N V Ramana to take suo motu cognizance of the acts of “illegal detention, bulldozing of residences and police violence on protesters and those in police custody” in Prayagraj and other places in Uttar Pradesh recently.

 Expressing serious concern over the developments, the retired judges and advocates, in a joint appeal, said that “the mettle of judiciary is tested in such critical times”.

Drawing attention of CJI towards the highhandedness of the police and state authorities, the legal luminaries said that the judiciary had faced challenges in the past and emerged with distinction as the custodian of the rights of the people. They mentioned the examples of the suo motu actions taken by the apex court in the migrant workers matter and in the Pegasus matter.

“In the same spirit, and in its role as custodian of the Constitution, we therefore urge the Honourable Supreme Court to take immediate suo motu action to arrest the deteriorating law and order situation in Uttar Pradesh, specifically involving the highhandedness of the police and state authorities, and the brutal clampdown on the fundamental rights of citizens,” the appeal said.

The retired judges and senior advocates hoped that the “Supreme Court will rise to the occasion and not let the citizens and the Constitution down at this critical juncture.”

Protests broke out all over India following certain remarks of BJP spokesperson ( now suspended from office) on Prophet Mohammed.

Pointing out that instead of giving protesters an opportunity of being heard and engaging in peaceful protests, they said that “the UP administration appears to have sanctioned taking violent action against such individuals.”

The letter-appeal alleged that the “Chief Minister has reportedly officially exhorted officials “to take such action against those guilty that it sets an example so that no one commits a crime or take law into their own hands in future.”

The Minister, the letter said, also directed the authorities to invoke National Security Act, 1980, and the Uttar Pradesh Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, 1986, against those found guilty of unlawful protests.

“It is these remarks that have emboldened the police to brutally and unlawfully torture protesters”, the legal luminaries alleged.

Stating that over 300 persons have been arrested and FIRS filed against protesting citizens, they said that videos of young men in police custody being beaten with lathis, houses of protesters being demolished without notice or any cause of action, and protesters from the minority Muslim community being chased and beaten by the police, are circulating on social media, had shaken the conscience of the nation.

“Such a brutal clampdown by a ruling administration is an unacceptable subversion of the rule of law and a violation of the rights of citizens, and makes a mockery of the Constitution and fundamental rights guaranteed by the State,” the letter said.

They pointed out that “the coordinated manner in which the police and development authorities have acted, lead to the clear conclusion that demolitions are a form of collective extra-judicial punishment, attributable to a state policy which is illegal.”

The letter a-ppeal is sgined by:

  1. Justice B Sudarshan Reddy, former Judge, Supreme Court of India.
  2. Justice V. Gopala Gowda, former judge, Supreme Court of India.
  3. Justice A K Ganguly, former judge, Supreme Court of India.
  4. Justice A P Shah, former chief justice, Delhi high court and former chairperson, Law Commission of India.
  5. Justice K. Chandru, former judge, Madras High Court.
  6. Justice Mohammed Anwar, Former judge, Karnataka high court.
  7. Mr. Shanti Bhushan, senior advocate, Supreme Court.
  8. Ms Indira Jaisinh, senior advocate, Supreme Court.
  9. Mr. Chander Udai Singh, senior advocate, Supreme Court.
  10. Mr. Sriram Panchu, senior advocate, Madras High Court.
  11. Mr. Prashant Bhushan, advocate, Supreme Court.
  12. Mr. Anand Grover, senior advocate, Supreme Court.

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