New Delhi, 22 July—Even as over 650 lawyers on Wednesday issued a statement calling the police crackdown on the Cockroach Janta Party-led student march to Parliament an attack on constitutional values and the Supreme Court Bar Association called for an impartial and time-bound inquiry into the police action, the Supreme Court displayed its insensitivity declining to hear an urgent plea challenging the police action.
Rubbing salt on the wounds, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant refused to entertain video evidence at the mentioning stage and telling the petitioner, “Don’t waste our time.” It may be recalled here that Justice Suryakant’s comparison of unemployed youth with the Cockroaches in the month of May had provoked Abhijit Dipke to form the Cockroach Janata Party online on 16 May.
The developments also come at a time when the Delhi High Court is hearing a public interest litigation alleging excessive use of force by police during the protest march.
The group of over 650 lawyers, including senior advocates, “expressed solidarity with the protesters and urged authorities to hold those responsible for any excessive use of force accountable,” legal news websites reported.
The Supreme Court Bar Association headed by its president and senior advocate Vikas Singh, in its resolution, said the police action left several students and members of the legal fraternity, including members of the association injured.
“The use of excessive and disproportionate force against peaceful students and members of the Bar is deeply disturbing and wholly unacceptable in a democratic society,” the resolution issued by SCBA secretary Pragya Baghel said.
The bar body urged authorities concerned to conduct an immediate, impartial and time-bound inquiry into the incident, identify those responsible for the alleged excessive use of force, and initiate appropriate action in accordance with law.
It also called on the authorities to ensure proper medical treatment and assistance for all injured students and members of the legal fraternity, while taking necessary steps to prevent the recurrence of such incidents.
“The Association stands in solidarity with all those injured and reiterates its commitment to protecting constitutional rights, human dignity and the rule of law,” it said.
On Monday, thousands of students, demanding the resignation of education minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET paper leak issue and irregularities in the exam system, attempted to march to Parliament but were pushed back with teargas and batons.
The 650 lawyers’ statement, signatories to which included senior advocates Indira Jaising, Raju Ramachandran, Chander Uday Singh, Sanjay Hegde, Huzefa Ahmadi, Rebecca M. John, Nandita Rao, Sanjay Parikh, Anjana Prakash, Gopal Sankaranarayanan, Gopal Subramanium, Jayant Bhushan, Shadan Farasat, Warisha Farasat, Navin R. Nath, Sumita Hazarika, Sanjay Ghose, Sidharth Luthra, Anand Grover, Amit Anand Tiwari, P.V. Dinesh and Manali Singhal, condemned “the use of violence by Delhi Police against peaceful youth protestors at Jantar Mantar on 20th July 2026.”
They said they stood in solidarity with all those who had been “harmed, intimidated and traumatised” during the police action.
“The Parliament of India is not an ivory tower that should be beyond the reach of its citizens,” they said.
Earlier, on Wednesday morning, the Supreme Court declined an urgent hearing on a plea challenging the police action.
The matter was mentioned before a bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohana.
Seeking an urgent listing of the petition, the counsel submitted, “I have the videos as well regarding police brutality… If it can be listed tomorrow (Thursday)… students are there.”
The lawyer argued that students were allegedly subjected to police brutality during the protest and informed the court that the petition contained three prayers.
However, the bench declined the request, with the CJI making it clear that the court was not inclined to examine video footage while considering an oral mentioning. .
“We are not interested in videos, we don’t have time to watch… We don’t want to watch videos,” the CJI said.
When the counsel reiterated that students had been beaten up and again referred to the video evidence, the CJI responded, “Don’t waste our time. We don’t want to watch any videos.”
Veteran Journalist and Political Commentator
