The Supreme Court on Thursday gave a one-month deadline for the enquiry committee to submit its report on the Jantar Mantar protest violence. The bench accepted the resignation of member L.R. Bishnoi. Petitioners got permission to submit evidence of alleged police excesses for the committee to examine and review.
Former Meghalaya police chief L R Bishnoi resigns from panel; petitioners may submit evidence of alleged police excesses for examination for its review
The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the high-powered enquiry committee appointed by it in connection with the July crackdown on Jantar Mantar protesters and the counter-allegations of violence by the agitators to submit its report within a month.
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant also accepted the resignation submitted to it by L.R. Bishnoi, former Meghalaya DGP and one of the committee members. Bishnoi's credentials as an independent member had been questioned by the petitioners on the ground of his alleged proximity to a top bureaucrat in New Delhi.
On September 10, the bench, which also has Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohana, refused to entertain a plea for reconstitution of the committee headed by former apex court judge R. Subhash Reddy to look into the allegations surrounding the protests against the NEET paper leaks.
On Thursday, the court asked the committee to submit its interim report within a month, although it had not set any such timeframe while setting up the panel. The court granted liberty to the petitioners to submit the materials available with them on alleged police excesses against protesters. The committee will examine the materials, the bench said.
The bench passed the directions after senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for one of the petitioners, stated that the committee should be asked to not only examine the complaints received directly from the "victim" but also the materials placed by the batch of petitioners before the court.