Told panel to probe sexual assault cases on priority basis: CJI Surya Kant

The Supreme Court said its high-powered panel must urgently examine allegations of sexual assault, harassment and violence involving women protesters at Jantar Mantar

The Supreme Court on Monday said allegations of sexual assault involving women who participated in the student protests at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar must receive urgent attention from the High-Powered Enquiry Committee (HPEC) investigating the violence and alleged police excesses during the demonstrations.

 

Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant said the Court’s August 18 order had expressly required the committee to examine allegations concerning sexual assault, harassment and violence against women protesters as a priority. The HPEC has also been directed to furnish an interim report on the sexual assault allegations at the earliest.

 

Senior Advocate Shobha Gupta raised the issue before a Bench of CJI Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi. She urged the Court to take suo motu cognisance of allegations that women protesters had been sexually assaulted by police personnel during the July 20 protests.

 

 

Gupta told the Bench that the allegations had received extensive circulation and called for the Court to intervene directly.

 

Justice Bagchi noted that a separate writ petition dealing with the same allegations was already before the Court and that the HPEC had been entrusted with examining the matter.

 

Gupta nevertheless argued that the sexual assault complaints required an independent mechanism. She proposed that a district judge be appointed before whom the affected women could directly record their complaints.

 

The CJI responded that the Court’s August 18 order already addressed the concern, since the HPEC had been specifically instructed to investigate such allegations on a priority basis and provide an interim report without delay.

 

Gupta then questioned how women with complaints would be able to reach the committee. CJI Surya Kant explained that the chairperson of the HPEC had been empowered to appoint nodal officers. The process for approaching the committee would be made public once those officers were appointed.

 

The CJI also agreed with Gupta’s suggestion that an email address should be publicly notified so that complainants could submit their allegations directly to the committee.

 

The Supreme Court had constituted the five-member HPEC last week under the chairmanship of former Supreme Court judge Justice R Subhash Reddy. Its mandate covers allegations as well as counter-allegations relating to violence during the student protests.

 

Among the matters specifically assigned to the committee are allegations of targeted violence, harassment, molestation and secondary victimisation of women protesters. The HPEC has also been asked to submit an early interim report concerning claims of excessive police force and molestation.