New Delhi, Sept. 10 -- The Supreme Court has sought a report on allegations that a teenage protester associated with the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) was harassed and subjected to threats after she spoke out about the alleged assault of her father during a protest at Delhi's Jantar Mantar.
The matter relates to a June 23 incident during a CJP-led protest, where the teenager's father, Sanjay Kumar, was allegedly assaulted during a scuffle. Swatantra Bharadwaj has been accused in connection with the incident. He was subsequently arrested and is currently in judicial custody.
The controversy intensified after a video from an interview circulated in which Bharadwaj appeared to claim that he had attacked the protester's father. He later said that his actions were in self-defence, claiming that he had been surrounded by a group of people and feared that he could be lynched.
The Delhi Police have disputed some of the claims surrounding the incident, including allegations that Kumar suffered a skull fracture. Police said he sustained a minor head injury during the scuffle and that the injury was caused by a metal bracelet, rather than a weapon. The police also said that the case was investigated according to legal procedure.
The teenager subsequently alleged that she faced harassment, verbal abuse, rape threats and the circulation of morphed images after raising the issue of the alleged assault on her father and approaching the authorities. The allegations of online and other forms of harassment have now come under the Supreme Court's scrutiny.
The court's intervention comes against the backdrop of a larger dispute surrounding cases linked to the CJP protests. The Supreme Court had earlier passed directions concerning criminal proceedings against students who participated in the protests.
A separate legal dispute also arose after a notice was issued to a student who had participated in the CJP demonstrations. The Supreme Court has indicated that it will seek an explanation from the Greater Noida Authority regarding the notice issued to the student.
In Bharadwaj's case, the Delhi High Court recently declined to entertain a petition challenging his arrest. The court observed that he was already in custody pursuant to judicial orders and said that he could challenge the arrest before the appropriate trial court.
Bharadwaj was arrested in Bulandshahr on September 4, following demands for action over the alleged assault. He was subsequently produced before a court, which initially allowed police custodial interrogation before he was sent to judicial custody. A Delhi court later remanded him to 14 days in Tihar Jail, till September 21.
The case has attracted considerable attention because of the allegations made by the teenager and her family, the claims surrounding the alleged assault, and the subsequent accusations of harassment and threats. The Supreme Court's decision to seek a report is expected to bring further clarity on the allegations concerning the teenager's safety and the action taken by authorities.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.