The Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered all states to release students below 18 years of age and those without criminal antecedents arrested or detained during the nationwide protests over the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak. It also directed that no coercive action be taken against students for the time-being while allowing investigations in the FIRs to continue.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohana passed the directions while hearing petitions alleging excessive police force during protests held in Delhi and several other states.
The court further directed that all arrested persons without criminal antecedents be released and ordered preservation of CCTV footage, drone footage, body-camera recordings, wireless communications and all other digital evidence related to the protests. It also directed authorities not to make such material public until further orders.
During the hearing, Advocate Prashant Bhushan referred to a plea by protest volunteer Junaid Malik alleging assault by the police. The court, however, said it was not examining individual facts at this stage but acknowledged that the allegations warranted a fair probe. “If we start looking at individual facts… the most conservative language we can use is that there is, prima facie, a case of violence involved. That is why we are hearing these matters,” the CJI observed.
Appearing for the Centre and the Delhi government, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the Union had no objection to an independent probe but urged the court to also examine attacks on police personnel. He said there were hardened criminals, miscreants and uninvited guests who entered the protest sites and resorted to violence against police personnel. “We do not think students would attack the police.”
The CJI responded, saying: “For police victims also, the issue needs to be addressed. These attacks on police officials — were they committed by students or by somebody else?”
‘Prima facie a case for independent probe’
Hearing a bunch of petitions that alleged use of disproportionate force by the police on student protesters, the court said it will take a call on ordering an independent probe after examining the responses of the Centre and states.
“The allegations made by the petitioners prima facie make out a case for independent and fair probe into the incidents. Such a probe will invariably also probe the allegations of violence and attacks on police personnel,” it said. Family members of police personnel injured during the protests and some journalists have also approached the court.
The matter of setting up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe incidents of violence and fix accountability also came up for consideration. The next hearing is on August 3.
Follow us
