The six-member panel of Supreme Court appointed lawyers have blamed the inaction of the Delhi police for the violence witnessed in Patiala court on February 15 and 17.
In its report which was released on Wednesday, the committee also mentioned that they were abused in filthy language and pelted with flower pots, pebbles and water bottles.
It was also informed that lawyers and journalists were locked inside the court room. It said the accused Kanhaiya Kumar was badly beaten up by lawyers and journalists were bashed up. The police failed to maintain law and order, it said.
“The atmosphere outside was surcharged and intimidating. Abuses were also shouted and hurled on Kapil Sibal and all other committee members. There was an instigation to intimidate the committee members and create an atmosphere of fear and terror. The upbeat mood of the crowd in lawyers’ dress, who continuously were shouting slogans and abuses to present a terrorising atmosphere, was clearly visible.”
But for the security ring provided by the officers of the Supreme Court security police, it would not have been possible for the committee members to come out unscathed.
Though there was a large number of police personnel employed, they could not contain other lawyers present in large numbers to intimidate one and all. It said two persons brazenly went inside the court hall where the accused was kept and assaulted him and the police did not apprehend them. It wanted responsibility to be fastened on police personnel who were present and who were aware of the apex court’s direction to ensure safety of the accused.
The Delhi police in its report denied the accused was assaulted by intruders in the court hall.
Justifying the inaction, the police said past experiences had clearly shown that the police has always been at the receiving end and has been castigated for either excessive use of force or for not exercising enough restraint in the tackling of lawyers in court promises. It has also been seen that mostly, innocent lawyers face the flipside of any action and the unruly ones manage to go scot-free. Hence police personnel deployed in the court premises were asked to exercise restraint till the situation warranted retributive action.
It said that lawyers who are supposed to act as pillars of democracy and defend human rights could resort to reprehensible activity like physical assault, blocking of the gates, targeting media persons, chasing the students etc. could not be visualised in normal condition.
The registrar-general of the Delhi high court, however, said that despite his insistence to the DCP Jatin Narwal to apprehend the culprits who assaulted the accused inside the court hall, he did not do so.
