On Tuesday the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) issued a notice to the Delhi police amid the ongoing protests surrounding the arrest of 22-year-old climate activist Disha Ravi in the ‘Toolkit’ case. Reports immediately surfaced that Disha was taken from Bengaluru to Delhi without even her parents knowing about her whereabouts and without a transit remand.
The DCW asked the Delhi Police to provide an explanation as to why Disha was taken to Delhi without first presenting her to a local court for a transit remand and why she wasn't provided with an attorney of her choice before producing her in the Delhi Court.
In a letter by the DCW it is mentioned that a suo motu cognizance has been taken and the Delhi police have been asked to provide a copy of the First Information Report (FIR) and a detailed report on the action taken in relation to the matter. Both these have been sought before February 19 considering the “gravity of the matter”.
Delhi Police said in a statement that Disha was “one of the Editors of the Toolkit Google Doc and a key conspirator in the document's formulation and dissemination.”
Watch: Bengaluru protest against Disha Ravi arrest
The toolkit for the farmers protest was shared by Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg. These toolkits are mostly documents that contain a summary of an issue and suggestions about what hashtags to use to spread the cause and whom to tag on social media. These toolkits are regularly used by many including political parties to organise protests or plan a campaign. The police's contention is that in this case, the document was made with an intention to malign India.
Swathi Maliwal, chairperson of DCW, has quoted in the letter the Delhi High Court order of 2019 which said that "endeavor should be made to obtain transit remand after producing the arrestee before the nearest Magistrate...unless exigencies of the situation warrant otherwise.”
She further quoted in the letter Article 22(1) of the Constitution which says that every person arrested has the right to be defended by a "legal practitioner of his choice".