Punjab & Haryana High Court Holds Midnight Hearing To Protect Persons Alleged To Be Illegally Detained By Armed Mob

The Punjab and Haryana High Court convened at midnight on Sunday to provide urgent relief to the petitioners including two minors who were allegedly held hostage by an armed mob said to be consisting of farmers.

The petitioners were attending a meeting at the house of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker, when a mob consisting of nearly 500 armed persons started gathering outside the house, the plea alleged. The mob allegedly disrupted the electric connection of the house, threw stones and illegally detained the petitioners under the garb of farmers' protest.

In the plea filed by Berjeshwar Jaswal and 14 others through Advocate Anil Mehta, the petitioners had pleaded for immediate directions from the Court to ensure their safety.

Justice Suvir Sehgal took immediate cognizance of the grievances raised and accordingly issued directions to ensure that the detained petitioners are safely allowed to exit from the custody of the armed mob.

"Respondents No.2 are directed to personally ensure that the petitioners and the other persons alleged to be illegally detained at House No. 179, Guru Arjan Dev Colony, Rajpura, District Patiala are provided a safe exit with adequate security and no harm is caused to anyone of them", the order stated.

Further, notice was also issued to the Advocate General of Punjab and the Additional Solicitor General of India to take immediate action in this regard. A status report was directed to be filed by roday, i.e. July 12.

Averments in the plea:

The plea contended that the armed mob had threatened to set the house on fire as they were mortified at the government for not complying with their demands. Although police personnel had arrived at the location, it was alleged that instead of arresting the armed persons they were in cahoots with the mob. As a result, the petitioners pleaded the Court to issue a writ of habeas corpus and a writ of mandamus directing the concerned authorities to immediately release the petitioners from the illegal custody of the armed mob.

Enumerating on the need to protect the life and liberty of citizens as enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution, the plea stated,

"The concept of life and liberty has become a strong basis for the smooth functioning of the administration of any state as the same connects the state to its citizens. It therefore becomes a duty of the organs of any state to protect the life and liberty of its citizens."

Advocates Anil Mehta, Mayank Sharma and SS Sidhu appeared for Petitioners.

Case Title: Berjeshwar Jaswal & Ors. v. State of Punjab & Ors.

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