New Delhi, July 22: The Delhi High Court issued notices to the Centre and the Delhi Police regarding public interest litigation alleging excessive force during the July 20 protest march organized by the Cockroach Janta Party. A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia directed authorities to preserve all CCTV footage, body camera records, and electronic evidence connected to the incident in line with Standard Operating Procedures.
Overriding preliminary objections regarding maintainability raised by Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju, the Bench observed that legal protocols must govern official action regardless of circumstances.
“Even if this was an unlawful assembly, there is a procedure to deal with it,” the Bench remarked during proceedings, clarifying that public law remedies apply alongside individual criminal liability when police excess is alleged.
Senior advocates representing the petitioners asserted that the assembly at Jantar Mantar began peacefully before police deployed force without mandatory warnings, public notices, or visible name badges on personnel. Conversely, the Centre argued that the petitions relied on selective media clips, maintaining that officers acted only after demonstrators turned violent and damaged vehicles. Giving four weeks for formal replies, the Court listed the matter for further hearing on September 11.
