New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Delhi Police Commissioner to ensure an investigation into a complaint filed by a group of lawyers who alleged they were assaulted during a protest demanding the resignation of Bar Council of India chairman Manan Kumar Mishra. A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant said a special investigation team headed by a senior police officer must be formed to probe the complaint.
The court said the police must submit a report to the jurisdictional magistrate after completing the investigation. The order came while the court was hearing a plea against a September 21 Delhi High Court judgment that had dismissed a petition seeking a CBI or independent agency probe into the alleged assault.
According to the petitioners, the alleged assault took place inside and outside the BCI premises on the intervening night of August 20 and 21. Appearing for them, advocate Prashant Bhushan told the Supreme Court that the High Court had said no cognisable offence was made out. He stated that the petitioners had filed a complaint with the station house officer of IP Estate Police Station on August 22, but no FIR had been registered.
During the hearing, Justice Joymalya Bagchi questioned whether it would be better to pursue a private complaint before a magistrate, to which Bhushan responded that beating someone constituted a cognisable offence. He also argued that the BCI should have taken professional misconduct action against the lawyers accused of carrying out the assault.
The bench noted that no formal notice had been issued to the respondents. However, to ensure that the incident was thoroughly examined, the court disposed of the petition with specific directions, instructing the Delhi Police Commissioner to have the August 22 complaint investigated by an SIT uninfluenced by the observations of the High Court.
In its earlier ruling, the Delhi High Court had dismissed the plea as not maintainable. The High Court had expressed disapproval of the petitioners' argument that the Delhi Police would not act fairly because Mishra was a ruling party member of Parliament, stating there was no basis to tarnish the police force.
The protest outside the BCI office on August 20 was organized by advocates alleging administrative irregularities and demanding Mishra's resignation. The demonstration also pressed for an Advocates Protection Act, insurance coverage for all advocates, and transparent inspections of law colleges. The Supreme Court has now instructed the Delhi Police to carry out a comprehensive SIT probe and present its findings to the magistrate.