The Supreme Court agreed to suo motu hear pleas for judicial enquiry into police action against students of the Jamia Millia and Aligarh Muslim universities on Tuesday (December 17), saying protests could go on but there should be, in the meanwhile, no riots, violence or arson on the streets.
“First, we want to be assured, there would be peace. If you want to take to street don’t come to us... We want rioting to stop. We are not saying students are responsible or police are innocent...What is this? Public properties are being destroyed. We will decide it in cool frame of mind,” Chief Justice of India S.A. Bobde told the lawyers on Monday during an oral mentioning.
In an urgent plea by senior lawyers Prashant Bhushan, Indira Jaising and Colin Gonsalves to the court to intervene and make the police accountable, Justice Bobde said the court wanted peace and could not hear the issue hastily when tempers were high.
Ms. Jaising said around 52 persons had been detained in the violence. There were news videos and pictures of burning buses, helmeted policemen lashing out with lathis, vandalised library of the university and young people paraded with both their hands held high on a cold Sunday night.
Justice Bobde said the protesters could not take matters into their hands though they may be students.
Published - December 16, 2019 11:24 am IST
