The Supreme Court on Monday voiced serious concern over allegations of the excessive and disproportionate deployment of force by police, paramilitary forces and other security personnel against peaceful protesters, underscoring the imperative of restraint in the State’s response to constitutionally protected dissent.
A three-judge Bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana was hearing a batch of petitions led by Shailendra Mani Tripathi v. Union of India & Ors., raising concerns over the alleged use of coercive measures against demonstrators, including those protesting at Jantar Mantar in the national capital.
The Bench took note of a series of allegations contained in affidavits filed by the petitioners, including the alleged deployment of pellet guns against peaceful protesters, causing grievous and, in certain instances, irreversible bodily injuries. The Court also recorded allegations concerning the use of electric batons, purportedly inflicting injuries disproportionate to any legitimate requirement of crowd-control measures.
The petitions further alleged indiscriminate lathi-charges and the use of tear gas without adequate warning or demonstrable provocation. The Bench also took note of allegations that police personnel had threatened protesters with fabrication of evidence and planting of incriminating material, allegedly with the intent of intimidating them and deterring the exercise of their fundamental right to peaceful assembly and dissent.
The Court expressed particular concern over allegations of violence against women and children participating in or present at such assemblies, noting claims that their safety, dignity and bodily integrity had been subjected to an unacceptable degree of disregard.
The State, represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, contested the allegations, submitting that certain anti-social elements with serious criminal antecedents had allegedly infiltrated the protests while presenting themselves as aggrieved students. It was argued that such persons had indulged in acts of violence during the demonstrations, resulting in injuries to police personnel.
The Bench also recalled its interim order dated July 28, 2026, under which the NCT of Delhi and other States had been directed to desist from coercive measures and to forthwith release persons detained in connection with the protests.
The Supreme Court has directed the States and investigating agencies to place on record details concerning compliance with its earlier directions. The proceedings assume significance against the backdrop of the constitutional equilibrium between maintaining public order and safeguarding the fundamental right to peaceful assembly and dissent, with the Court signalling that legitimate crowd-control powers cannot become a licence for disproportionate coercion.
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