The Saket court on October 10 rejected Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) legal affairs head Ratna Singh’s plea seeking registration of an FIR against police personnel over her alleged wrongful confinement ahead of a protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Magistrate Abhinav Pandey also rejected Singh’s application seeking release from the alleged detention. The court found the FIR application not maintainable in its present form, citing the absence of an affidavit and several necessary details. Her application seeking release was also held to be not maintainable because a complaint on oath was required for the court to exercise the power invoked.
Singh, who heads the CJP’s legal team, had approached the court alleging that police personnel prevented her from proceeding to a lawyers’ protest against the Chief Election Commissioner over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Advocate Adit S. Pujari represented her before the court.
According to her application, Singh was preparing to travel towards the Supreme Court with two fellow advocates when her movement was restricted outside her residence at Jangpura Extension. She alleged that she was sitting in advocate Tara Narula’s car when two vehicles blocked it from the front and rear, while police personnel stood outside the car doors.
Singh claimed that despite repeatedly asking the personnel to explain the legal basis for restricting her movement, no order or authorisation was shown to her. She described the incident as wrongful restraint and confinement and expressed apprehensions concerning her liberty, safety and bodily integrity. The application also referred to a PCR call made by another advocate accompanying her.
Seeking judicial intervention, Singh asked for registration of an FIR or non-cognisable report against those allegedly responsible and a status report on the situation at Jangpura. She submitted that the urgency of the circumstances prevented her from first approaching higher police officers, whom she alleged might themselves be involved in the action. She also requested that a video of the incident be examined by the court.
The applications were filed amid the CJP’s proposed demonstration at Jantar Mantar demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. In a video circulated by the party, Singh alleged that police personnel had visited her residence in the morning and later surrounded her car without producing an official notice.
Separately, lawyers protesting near the Supreme Court were detained and taken to Yamuna Sports Complex. Following an urgent communication from the Supreme Court Bar Association, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant conveyed to the authorities that the detained advocates should be released. Singh was subsequently released by police in the evening.
The dismissal of Singh’s applications turned on their maintainability and the procedural requirements for invoking the court’s powers.
