Supreme Court Sets Up 5 Member Panel To Probe Police Excesses During Student Protests

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday constituted a five-member High-Powered Expert Committee (HPEC) headed by retired SC judge Justice R Shubhash Reddy to probe allegations of excessive and disproportionate use of force by the police, paramilitary forces, and other security personnel against peaceful protesters assembled at Jantar Mantar in Delhi against the NEET paper leak last month.

The panel will investigate allegations of violence by protesters and assess whether force used by authorities was lawful and proportionate. The HPEC consists of former Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice Ravi Shankar Jha, former Delhi High Court judge Justice Shalinder Kaur, former CBI Director Rishi Kumar Shukla and former Meghalaya DGP LR Bishnoi.

A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana said the panel was constituted keeping in mind the expertise, experience and diversity of its members, and expressed confidence that its recommendations would assist the court in comprehensively assessing the issues.

Continuous assessment ordered

Notably, the court clarified that the HPEC's investigation will not be a one-time exercise. It will conduct a continuous and periodic assessment of the issues and submit interim findings to the court, enabling it to take appropriate measures and issue directions, if required.

The top court has directed the panel to prioritise allegations of targeted violence, harassment and molestation of female protesters, given the sensitivity of the issue.

Evidence preservation directed

SC ordered the preservation of CCTV footage, drone recordings, body-cam footage, and PCR call records related to the protest to ensure that crucial evidence is not tampered with during the probe and that the sequence of events can be examined independently.

The committee will also examine whether police and security personnel wore proper uniforms and visible nameplates while making arrests or using force.

Compensation for injured considered

Besides, the committee will consider interim compensation for injured protestors and police personnel. Initial official reports stated that over 118 police personnel and around 60 protestors were injured. Later police filings and updated assessments provided higher figures, citing over 240 injured police personnel and approximately 200 to 218 injured protestors.