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‘Reckless reporting’: CJI Surya Kant denies rejecting plea on Delhi Police brutality amid protests

‘Reckless reporting’: CJI Surya Kant denies rejecting plea on Delhi Police brutality amid protests

Chief Justice of India, Justice Surya Kant Photograph: (ANI)

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CJI Surya Kant denied reports claiming he refused to hear a plea on Delhi Police action against protesters, saying no petition was filed and only a representation was submitted. He called media reports reckless.

Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant on Friday (Jul 24) said that no petition was filed seeking the Supreme Court’s intervention into the alleged use of excessive force by Delhi Police against protesters on July 20. This comes after reports surfaced claiming that the CJI refused to hear a plea over police action on students’ protest.

CJI Kant said that no petition was filed and it was only a representation. He alleged that the media reported the matter “recklessly”.

“Some person mentioned it. Media has falsely reported that I refused to list the matter. It was only a representation, and people started recklessly reporting it. I checked with registry and not a paper was filed,” he said.

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“In the last two days, a completely false statement was made that a matter was filed, and the media is absolutely free from all responsibility, recklessly falsely reporting that the Chief Justice refused to list the matter. Till morning 10, not a single page had been filed,” he added.

What did CJI say?

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Earlier on Wednesday (Jul 24), a lawyer brought up the matter alleging that Delhi Police and other forces deployed in the national capital used excessive force against protesters at Jantar Mantar. “Student protest is going at Jantar Mantar. Police is taking brutal actions…” the lawyer said.

In response, the CJI had said, “Please don’t waste our time and don’t waste yours. Your time is more valuable than ours.”

When the lawyer insisted on presenting videos of the said incidents, CJI Kant said that the Court was not interested in videos.

What happened at Delhi protests?

The development came after a protest over a NEET paper leak organised by the Cockroach Janta Party on July 20 in Delhi turned violent, with police facing backlash for using tear gas and batons to disperse the crowd. Protesters have accused the Delhi Police of using excessive force against people at the demonstrations. The incident led to outrage across the nation, triggering demonstrations across several parts of the nation. There have been some instances of police officials being beaten by a mob as well. CJP has distanced itself from the violence in the national capital, saying that miscreants who incited violence were not part of the students’ protest organised by them but ill elements who wanted to derail the peaceful protests.

On May 12, the National Testing Agency (NTA) scrapped the May 3 National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate), or NEET-UG, following allegations that the question paper had been leaked. A fresh examination was subsequently conducted on June 21. The incident has faced backlash from students, educationalists, and leaders. So far, the CBI has arrested 13 individuals in the case, all of whom are in judicial custody.

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Prajvi Mathur

Prajvi Mathur is a Sub-Editor at WION with over 2 years of experience in journalism and digital content. With a keen interest in geopolitics and national affairs, she covers a wide...Read More