Jantar Mantar protest: Cops seek more time in case against Oppn leaders

Delhi Police sought more time to investigate a 2025 Jantar Mantar protest case where Rahul Gandhi and other leaders are accused. A court pulled up the police for not issuing notices to the accused before filing the charge sheet.

Delhi Police has sought time for further investigation from the Rouse Avenue court and filed a status report in a case pertaining to a protest against the UGC Regulations Draft at Jantar Mantar in 2025.

An FIR was lodged at Parliament Street Police Station in 2025, and a charge sheet has already been filed naming leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, KC Venugopal, Akhilesh Yadav, A Raja and Kanimozhi. Link Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (ACJM) Ashwani Panwar conducted the hearing, wherein the Delhi Police filed a status report and sought time for further investigation.

Court Scrutinizes Investigation Lapses

The Rouse Avenue court had earlier asked the Delhi Police why notices were not issued to the proposed accused persons to join the investigation and why the police report was filed without issuing notices to 10 of the accused persons.

At the previous hearing on February 19, ACJM Paras Dalal had noted that 11 persons had been arraigned as accused in the chargesheet. The police report shows that one accused, CVMP Ezhilarasan, was issued notice to join the investigation under Section 35(3) of the BNSS via email dated 07.04.2025, the court had noted.

The Court further noted that the police report then submitted that the accused did not join the investigation. No further steps were taken by the Investigation Officer (IO) for joining the accused CVMP Ezhilarasan in the investigation of the present matter. Regarding the other 10 accused persons, no notice was issued by the IO for joining the investigation in the present matter.

The court had observed that the IO did not comply with the judgement of the Supreme Court in the case of Satyender Kumar Antil and was in violation of the standing order of the Delhi police of 2020.

Senior Officers Ordered to Justify Actions

The court had issued a direction that the SHO and the ACP shall thus file a report as to on what basis they have forwarded the present police report, after having satisfied themselves that the offence has been committed as alleged.

"Both the SHO and the ACP shall further file a report as to under what consideration they forwarded the present police report, after perusing that the notice to one accused was issued through email and no notice was issued to the remaining 10 accused persons to join the investigation," ACJM Paras Dalal had ordered. The court had further directed that the SHO and the ACP shall report the rule/ guidelines/ Order under which a police report can be filed against accused persons without having joined the investigation at all. Both the SHO and the ACP were directed to get their reports forwarded by the Worthy Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi District, before filing the same before this Court.

Matter Escalated to Police Commissioner

The court had asked to bring the matter to the notice of the Commissioner of Delhi police. "This Court is bound to bring the present Order to the notice of Worthy Commissioner of Police, Delhi, to take note of the failure of the investigating officer in carrying out a full and fair investigation in the present case and take necessary departmental action against them as mandated by law," the court had said.

The Worthy Commissioner of Police, Delhi, shall also take note of the casual forwarding of the police report by the concerned SHO as well as the ACP, the court had directed. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)