Delhi Court Gives Bail to 10 Protesters Held Over India Gate Pollution Demonstration
A Delhi court has granted bail to ten people who were arrested for protesting against Delhi’s severe air pollution near India Gate. The Delhi Police had claimed that the group shouted “anti-national” slogans during the demonstration on November 23.
The bail orders were passed by Judicial Magistrate First Class Aridaman Singh Cheema at Patiala House Courts. Those who received bail include Aatreya Chaudhary, Prakash Kumar Gupta, Vishnu Tiwari, Shreshth Mukund, Banka Akash, Ahan Arun Upadhyay, Satyam Yadav, Tanya Srivastava and Samir Fayis.
While hearing the plea of student-accused Banka Akash, the Court noted that the Police had alleged he was linked to a radical Naxalite group. However, the judge observed that investigations had revealed no evidence to support this claim. The Court also noted that the CCTV footage and video recordings of the protest were already with the police, and the mobile phones of the accused had been seized.
The judge held that keeping the accused in judicial custody would serve no purpose at this stage.
One protester, Ilakiya, was not granted bail.
The protest near India Gate was organised to highlight Delhi’s worsening air pollution. However, the situation escalated quickly. According to the Police, the protesters refused to move to Jantar Mantar—an authorised protest site—blocked traffic, and allegedly raised slogans in support of Naxalite leader Madvi Hidma, who was recently killed in a security operation. The Police further claimed that some protesters assaulted female police staff and used chilli spray on a constable.
A total of 23 people, mostly students, were arrested in connection with the incident.
Advocates Nizam Pasha, Ahmad Ibrahim, Arif Ali, Jeet Chakraborty and Ayesha Zaidi represented Tanya Srivastava and Ilakiya. Advocates Subhash Chandran KR, Krishna LR and Anirudh KP argued for accused Banka Akash. Additional Public Prosecutor Bhanu Pratap Singh appeared for the Delhi Police.
