SC refuses to entertain plea for framing of guidelines on expeditious grant of sanction to prosecute

The Supreme Court on Monday refused to entertain a plea seeking framing of guidelines to ensure an expeditious grant of sanction to prosecute the accused in serious offences like the sedition case against former JNU Students' Union president Kanhaiya Kumar.

A bench of Chief Justice S A Bobde, justices B R Gavai and Surya Kant said such an order could be passed only in a specific case and directions of generic nature could not be issued.

"The law should be followed in a particular case," the bench told lawyer Shashank Deo Sudhi, who was appearing for former BJP MLA Nand Kishor Garg.

The top court was hearing Garg's appeal against a Delhi High Court order refusing to frame guidelines on grant of sanction to prosecute an accused.

The high court had also refused to direct the AAP government in the national capital to grant sanction to prosecute Kumar in the sedition case.

It had said it could not pass a direction in this regard and it was for the Delhi government to decide in accordance with the existing rules, policy, law and facts of the case on whether to grant an approval for prosecution.

The plea has sought issuance of guidelines "for expeditious disposal of criminal cases of serious nature where there is involvement of influential persons as accused".

The petition alleged that Kumar's case highlighted the lackadaisical approach of the government as it had "failed" to grant the sanction letter, which was required prior to taking cognisance of the chargesheet.

On January 14, 2019, the Delhi Police had filed a chargesheet in the trial court against Kumar and others, including former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, saying they were leading a procession and had supported the seditious slogans raised on the university campus during an event on February 9, 2016.

The trial has not started as the sanction to prosecute Kumar and others for the offence of sedition is yet to be accorded by the Delhi government.