Law enforcement agencies must exercise restraint during protests: SC

The Supreme Court on Wednesday (August 5) emphasised the need for restraint from law enforcement agencies during protests, adding that the youth must be pacified despite some “misguided elements” resorting to stone-pelting.

The remarks came during the hearing of a petition seeking legal action against the organisers of the 'Sansad Chalo' protest march on July 20, accusing them of inciting violence.

The petition was tagged with a similar one by the bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana tagged the plea, filed by a retired Air Force officer.

Plea on protest violence

Appearing for the petitioner, advocate Rizwan Ahmed argued that even 15 days after the protest, the accountability of the organisers has not been fixed, alleging that they were giving provocative statements in the media to keep the unrest alive. He further stated that governments should not bend backwards to accommodate protesters.

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"Fifteen days have passed... What about the accountability of the organisers? They are going from channel to channel giving provocative statements and refusing to douse the fire,” said Ahmed.

"One young man has died. If the government bends backwards in a matter concerning the national capital, will it not set a precedent in Rajasthan? There also, the government will bend backwards to accommodate students. Tomorrow, if degree college students in Lucknow have some demand and start pelting stones at buses, will the government in Uttar Pradesh also bend backwards?" he added.

CJI urges restraint

At this point, the CJI said that even if the "misguided elements" indulge in stone-pelting, youngsters are required to be pacified and counselled.

"They need advice and counselling. Any aggressive approach from the side of the mighty State may socially aggravate the situation and precipitate further violence. That needs to be avoided," the CJI said.

Warning against precedent

The lawyer further submitted that those resorting to stone-pelting should not be allowed to get away with it. "This is a very dangerous precedent. Three years back, the farmers were at the Singhu border. Tomorrow, Generation Alpha, Beta, Delta will come," he said.

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Pointing out that the protesters were marching to the Parliament, the lawyer argued how can they march to the “temple of democracy”, adding what would have happened if 500 people entered the premises and "who knows whether they were carrying a country-made gun?"

"What if they had opened fire? They were not marching on a national highway. They were not marching on a railway line. They were marching towards the temple of democracy. Everyone must be held accountable," he said.

Focus on peaceful protests

The CJI observed that the focus should be on ensuring peaceful protests while exercising restraint if an incident occurs.

"What is important is to promote a peaceful march. If some incident takes place, the police also need to exercise a great deal of restraint to ensure that the situation does not go out of hand. Wherever such incidents take place, we need to deal with them very carefully," he said.

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"We need to tread carefully, so that these youngsters do not indulge in violence. The better course is to counsel them and pacify them. The most powerful tool is listening. Listen to them and understand why they are shouting.

"But let us leave it to the wisdom of the law-enforcement agencies. They know better than you, and they know better than us, how to deal with this kind of situation," the CJI said.

The plea also sought directions to identify those who allegedly used derogatory language against police and security personnel and require them to perform community service.

(With agency inputs)