New Dehi (Gurpreet Singh): The Supreme Court of India has constituted a five-member High-Powered Enquiry Committee, headed by former apex court judge Justice R. Subhash Reddy, to conduct a comprehensive fact-finding inquiry into allegations of excessive police force and violence against student protesters, as well as clashes involving security personnel during recent demonstrations in New Delhi. The panel also includes former Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice Ravi Shankar Jha, former Delhi High Court Judge Justice Shalinder Kaur, former Central Bureau of Investigation Director Rishi Kumar Shukla, and former Meghalaya Director General of Police Dr. L.R. Bishnoi.
The order, passed by a three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice V. Mohana, mandates the committee to examine the proportionality of crowd-control measures, the deployment of pellet guns and electric batons, instances of police surveillance, and the potential banning of metallic kinetic projectiles. The top court directed the panel to prioritize inquiries into targeted violence, harassment, and alleged molestation of female demonstrators, while establishing individual accountability across the chain of command. Concurrently, the committee will evaluate injuries suffered by police personnel, related property damage, and the provision of medical relief and interim compensation for victims on both sides.
The bench emphasized that the inquiry will operate on a continuous, periodic basis rather than as a one-time exercise, instructing the panel to submit interim findings regularly. The committee has also been tasked with assessing whether blanket prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita were routinely misused to curtail peaceful assembly, and evaluating safeguards around Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Furthermore, the court clarified that the committee’s formation will not bar law enforcement agencies from taking independent administrative or disciplinary action against errant personnel, while noting that CCTV recordings and body-camera footage will be submitted to the panel as the court considers relief for innocent students.
