The Supreme Court has refused to grant bail to a Delhi University (DU) student accused of inciting violence during an industrial workers’ protest in Noida last month, observing that the petitioner should first approach the jurisdictional High Court for relief.
The Bench of Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan declined to entertain the writ petition filed by Aakriti Chaudhary, one of the accused in the April 13 clashes that allegedly broke out during demonstrations staged by factory workers over demands related to higher wages and improved working conditions.
During the hearing, the Bench questioned the practice of directly approaching the Apex Court for bail under Article 32 of the Constitution. Highlighting the staggering backlog of 93,000 pending cases, the judges urged the petitioner to follow judicial hierarchy rather than rushing to the Supreme Court.
The Counsel representing Chaudhary, a postgraduate student of Daulat Ram College, argued that the police had failed to provide the grounds of arrest and sought interim protection from the Court.
The Court, however, refused to entertain the bail plea, indicating that the petitioner must first exhaust remedies before the Allahabad High Court. At the same time, the Bench issued notice to Uttar Pradesh police officials on a separate plea filed by Keshaw Anand alleging custodial torture in connection with the same case.
The matter stems from large-scale protests held by industrial workers in Noida on April 13 over pending demands for wage revision and improved working conditions. Officials said workers from multiple industrial units had assembled to demonstrate and raise slogans demanding salary hikes.
According to the police, the protest later turned violent, with certain participants allegedly vandalising public and private property, pelting stones and setting a vehicle ablaze. Criminal cases were subsequently registered, and several persons were arrested for their alleged involvement in the violence.
A Noida court had earlier granted conditional police remand of three women accused in the case, Aakriti Chaudhary, Manisha Chauhan and Srishti Gupta. The trial court had also directed that lawyers representing the accused be allowed to remain present during the investigation proceedings.
Seeking custodial interrogation, the police had argued before the trial court that there was a strong likelihood of recovering important evidence from the residences of the accused. Chaudhary and Gupta, both residents of Delhi and in their 20s, were identified as student activists, while Chauhan was stated to be employed at an industrial unit in Noida.
The case has sparked debate over the police response to labour protests and the use of serious criminal charges against student activists and workers allegedly linked to the demonstration.
The Supreme Court’s refusal to directly entertain the bail plea also reflects growing judicial concern over mounting pendency before the Apex Court. By asking the petitioner to first approach the Allahabad High Court, the Bench reiterated that constitutional remedies before the top court of the country should not ordinarily bypass regular judicial forums unless exceptional circumstances are made out.
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