New Delhi: A Delhi court has dismissed an advocate's plea for action against policemen for restraining lawyers and litigants from entering the court complex when former Haryana Chief Minister O P Chautala and 54 others were sentenced in the JBT teachers' recruitment scam. Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Sanjeev Kumar rejected the revision plea filed by the advocate against the order of a magistrate and said police personnel were discharging their official duties and their action was bonafide for maintaining law and order in the "unprecedented" situation.
"The fact is not disputed that on January 22, 2013, an unprecedented situation has arisen as on that day Om Parkash Chautala, ex CM, was to be sentenced as he was convicted in a criminal case, therefore, police has made huge arrangement to avoid any untoward incident and to maintain law and order situation.
"As a judge in this court, I had also personally seen that heavy security arrangement was made by the police as huge gathering of public was present and even stones were lying on the road, which sufficiently indicates that supporters might have done something wrong or had tried to enter into the court forcibly which police was preventing," the ASJ said.
Justifying police action, the court said it is admitted case of the complainant that supporters of Chautala had gathered at the spot and were creating law and order problem. The lawyer, who is practising in Rohini Courts complex here, said in his complaint that on the morning of January 22, 2013, when he reached near Rohini court by his car, all the roads towards the complex were blocked by Delhi Police officials in the name of maintaining public law and order for O P Chautala.
The same incident had happened on January 16 when Chautala was convicted, he said. He said that after some time, he again tried to enter the court but was stopped and when the lawyers protested, they were "manhandled and lathicharged and brutally beaten by the police officials". The advocate said he had also made a PCR call and after a strong protest by the advocates, they were allowed to enter the court complex in the afternoon.
The court said there was nothing wrong in the act of the policemen in not allowing advocates to come inside the premises as somebody in disguise of a lawyer can also enter. It said the action of the police to block the entry of public was to ensure safety of judicial officers, court staff and other lawyers who were present in the premises. "The police officials are duty bound to maintain law and order and in such situation they had taken the decision according to the facts and circumstances which were prevalent at that time.
Hence, I do not find anything wrong in the act of the police officials present there to restrain the public to enter into the court which also include advocates as somebody in disguise of an advocate can also enter," it said. The judge said it was an extraordinary situation before the cops and no mens rea can be attributed to the action taken by the police.
The court, however, said undoubtedly, the police should try to make arrangement in such a manner that lawyers and the bonafide litigants be allowed to enter in the court pemises, if such situation has arisen as far as possible. "But merely because police officials at that time did not think it proper and did not allow anyone to enter in court premises due to extra ordinary situation and it cannot be said that their action amount to wrongful restrain. They were discharging their public duty," it said.
The court said no cognisable offence has been committed by the police officials by restraining the entry of advocate and if a lawyer had been attacked by the cops, as alleged by the complainant, the Bar association would have definitely raised the issue with the district judge but no such complaint was made.
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