The Supreme Court on Wednesday, July 22, refused to allow the urgent listing of a petition against police excesses during the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) protest in Delhi. The matter was heard by a bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, who told the petitioners not to waste the court’s time.
The petitioner's lawyer told the court that the students were protesting issues such as the conduct of the NEET examination, alleged paper leaks, and reforms in the National Testing Agency (NTA), LiveLaw reported.
Chief Justice of India Surya Kant declined the request, saying, "Don't waste our time, and don't waste your time."
When the lawyer attempted to continue, saying there were videos showing alleged police excesses against protesters, the Chief Justice responded, "We are not interested in videos, we don't have time to watch," before ending the exchange.
Notably, the CJP was formed after a May 15 remark made by Chief Justice Surya Kant, who said, "There are youngsters like cockroaches, who don't get any employment and don't have any place in profession. Some of them become media, some of them become social media, some of them become RTI activists, some of them become other activists, and they start attacking everyone.”
The Supreme Court's refusal came a day after the Delhi High Court also declined to urgently hear a similar public interest litigation alleging excessive use of force by the Delhi Police during the CJP's march.
The PIL was mentioned before a division bench comprising Delhi Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia. Refusing an urgent hearing, the bench orally remarked, "Don't drag the court into all this. It will come up tomorrow."
The petitions stem from the CJP’s "Sansad Chalo" march on July 20, where thousands of protesters attempted to march towards the Parliament seeking the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over NEET paper leaks and demanding reforms to the NTA.
As protesters breached multiple barricades, Delhi Police used tear gas, lathis, and detentions to disperse the crowd amid heavy security deployment around Parliament. Several protesters alleged excessive use of force and videos circulating on social media appeared to show police assaulting demonstrators.
The Delhi Police initially denied any violence or detentions, saying the protest was being handled "professionally". Later, police registered five FIRs in connection with alleged violence, stone-pelting, and vandalism during the march.
Police said the cases have been registered at Connaught Place, Parliament Street, and other police stations, adding that authorities are identifying those involved using video footage from the affected areas.