Supreme Court Restricts Coercive Action Against Student Protesters Amid Illegal Detention Claims
The Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed police in Delhi and Bihar to continue investigating First Information Reports (FIRs) linked to recent student protests against examination paper leaks, but directed authorities not to take coercive action against protesting students unless they have criminal antecedents. The order came on petitions alleging that police in both states had engaged in illegal and arbitrary detentions of individuals associated with the protests.
One impleadment application, filed by Junaid Malik, who volunteered to distribute food and water at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, claims that on the night of July 24, 2026, he and a friend were intercepted by four or five individuals in a white Scorpio without a number plate while returning from Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital after treatment for a dog bite. The application states that the individuals, identified as Delhi Police personnel, seized their mobile phones, forced them to unlock the devices, and searched their contents.
The application further alleges that the two were blindfolded and taken to an undisclosed location, where they were detained overnight and questioned by senior police officers about the source of funds used to distribute food and water at the protest site. They were released the next morning near Dehradun-Mussoorie Road, several hours from Delhi, with instructions not to switch on their phones for an hour. Malik has provided an Uber receipt as evidence of his journey from Dehradun to Delhi.
Additionally, Malik claims that a team of 10 to 12 police personnel raided his residence on July 24, 2026, demanding bank account details and identity documents of all family members. He also alleges that his sister's father-in-law and brother-in-law were taken from their residence in Meerut to Masuri police station in Ghaziabad, detained and questioned, and released later that evening after lawyers intervened. The application contends that none of these actions were recorded in any official paperwork, diary entry, or other official record, and that they violate Article 21 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to life and personal liberty.
Another petition filed by a 22-year-old law student from Bihar alleges that he was picked up by police while participating in protests on July 25, 2026, and remanded in judicial custody at Beur Central Jail in Patna. The petition claims that he was never informed of the grounds of his arrest, nor was a memorandum of arrest prepared.
The Supreme Court, while taking cognizance of the allegations, has allowed police investigations to proceed but has restrained authorities from taking coercive action against protesting students without criminal antecedents. The court's order aims to balance the need for lawful investigation with the protection of fundamental rights.
