Jantar Mantar assault: Court grants regular bail to Swatantra Bhardwaj

The Patiala House Court granted regular bail to Swatantra Bhardwaj in an assault case from a Jantar Mantar protest. The court rejected a plea to restrict his travel outside Delhi NCR, noting no violation of his interim bail conditions.

Regular Bail Granted, Travel Restriction Rejected

The Patiala House Court has converted the interim bail granted to Swatantra Bhardwaj into regular bail in connection with the alleged assault of Sanjay Azad during a June 23 CJP protest at Jantar Mantar, while rejecting a plea seeking to restrict Bhardwaj from leaving Delhi NCR.

While granting regular bail to Swatantra Bhardwaj, the Patiala House Court said that restricting him from leaving Delhi is not warranted. The complainant had sought to impose stricter conditions of restraining Bhardwaj from leaving the Delhi NCR region.

The court rejected the prayer and converted the interim bail into a regular one after noting that there is no violation of the conditions of Interim bail. Swatantra Bhardwaj was arrested for allegedly assaulting Sanjay Azad, who belongs to the SC community, on June 23, during a CJP protest at Jantar Mantar.

Court Cites No Violation of Bail Conditions

The court noted, "Neither the Investigating Officer nor the complainant has brought to the notice of this Court any violation of the conditions imposed by the order of September 15, 2026."

"In the absence of any such material or complaint, there is no justification to withhold conversion of the interim bail into regular bail or to impose additional restrictions," Special Judge SPS Laler held.

The complainant had sought stricter conditions, including restraining Bhardwaj from leaving the Delhi NCR region. However, the court said that such a restriction was not warranted.

"The prayer for a condition restricting the applicant from leaving the NCT of Delhi is not warranted," the court said. "The applicant is a resident of Darbhanga, Bihar, with family roots there. Suitable conditions already address the concerns of presence and cooperation. No direction is required that he shall remain in Delhi throughout the trial," the court observed.

Bhardwaj was arrested for allegedly assaulting Sanjay Azad, who belongs to the Scheduled Caste community, during a CJP protest at Jantar Mantar on June 23, 2026. After weighing the circumstances, including the absence of any reported violation of the bail conditions by either the Investigating Officer or the complainant, the court made the interim bail granted on September 15 regular.

Bail Conditions Reaffirmed

"The applicant-accused Swatantra Bhardwaj is granted regular bail on the same terms and conditions as contained in the order of 15.09.2026. No modification in the said conditions is made," the Special Judge ordered.

However, the court reiterated that Bhardwaj shall not make, publish, post, upload or share any statement, comment, video, podcast, interview, reel or post concerning the facts of the case or another FIR, his defence, or the complainant and his family, on social media, in the electronic or print media, or on any other public platform. "He shall not have any conversation in this regard with anyone from electronic/print media or social media. Other conditions as contained in the order dated September 15, 2026, are directed to be followed by the accused without any default," the court ordered.

The court also made it clear that in case of any default, the complainant and the Investigating Agency would be at liberty to approach the court seeking cancellation of bail for violation of the conditions.

Investigation to be Expedited

On the investigation, the court directed the Investigating Officer to expedite the probe, obtain the relevant CCTV footage, complete the pending forensic and other examinations, and ensure that the charge sheet is filed within the time prescribed by the SC/ST (POA) Act.

The court said the status report filed by the police reflected compliance with several directions issued on September 15, though certain steps, including forensic examination of electronic material, a reply from Instagram/Facebook, examination of the channel operator and medical examination, remained pending.

"Both the learned counsel for the complainant and the learned counsel for the applicant stated that the CCTV footage from the PWD, Delhi Police, or other networks covering the place of the incident should be checked and seized at the earliest. The Investigating Officer shall take note of the same and obtain the relevant CCTV footage from PWD, Delhi Police, or other agencies whose CCTVs were installed in the area," the court ordered. (ANI)

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