New Delhi [India], October 11 (ANI): Senior Advocate and Congress Rajya Sabha MP Abhishek Manu Singhvi on Sunday slammed the police action on demonstrators in the national capital, terming the administrative action "completely illegal, unconstitutional," and a blatant violation of the fundamental right to peaceful assembly.
"The detention is absolutely illegal and unconstitutional. There is no question of the protesters having done anything wrong. These are anticipatory, preventive detentions carried out before anything has even begun. Somebody was picked up from Gurugram, and somebody else was picked up from a plane. This is a complete violation of the fundamental right to protest peacefully in the Gandhian manner. You cannot do this in the name of some so-called special security measures," Singhvi told ANI.
Speaking to reporters here regarding the protest march, Singhvi clarified that the demonstration was organised to raise critical issues concerning democratic values before the constitutional institutions of the country, emphasising that there was no political motive aimed at the judiciary.
"It is intended to bring to the attention of all the heads of the organs of the state what we believe is affecting the very foundations of democracy. There is nothing else to it. There is nothing political about it as far as the Supreme Court is concerned. We are simply presenting a particular point of view to what we believe is a vital organ of the state," Singhvi said.
Hitting out at the authorities over preemptive detentions carried out across multiple locations, the senior parliamentarian argued that the police had overstepped legal boundaries by clamping down on citizens before any assembly had even taken place.
Singhvi's remarks come amid heightened security arrangements and widespread preventive detentions by the police in parts of Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) to restrict unauthorised protest gatherings and marches toward high-security zones.
Earlier in the day, A day after Delhi witnessed detentions of protestors and heavy deployment of police, Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi called on the youth, opposition parties and civil society groups to unite and march to the Supreme Court on Monday, urging people to shed fear with the words "Daro mat."
"We will march together, with love, brotherhood and patriotism. Daro mat. Tomorrow, all of India will march to the Supreme Court," Gandhi said in a post on X.He said the march would bring together Indians "united beyond party, gender, caste, community and state." Youth, all opposition parties, civil society groups and "all those who believe in democracy and stand by the Constitution of India" would walk with them, he said.
Gandhi said a memorandum would be submitted to the Chief Justice Surya Kant on behalf of the nation "demanding an end to vote chori, halting of SIR and the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar."
"Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, Ajit Doval and Mohan Bhagwat cannot silence India's voice. These cowards cannot intimidate us. They will have to step aside. We will march together, with love, brotherhood and patriotism. Daro mat. Tomorrow, all of India will march to the Supreme Court," he said.
The protest, called by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), was met with heavy police deployment and mass detentions. JP CJP activists Abhijeet Dipke, Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das were released earlier after being produced before the Executive Magistrate at Delhi Cantt Police Station, according to CJP Legal Affairs Head Ratna Singh. CJP Legal Affairs Head Ratna Singh took to X to state, "Condition: no breach of peace for one year."
However. Dipke has claimed he had not signed any bond and would not be deterred by arrest, daring the authorities to jail him "not just once, but a hundred times." (ANI)
"Detention illegal, unconstitutional": Congress MP Abhishek Manu Singhvi slams police action on protesters
