Supreme Court Issues Notice In Appeal By AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan Against Delhi Police’s History Sheet Declaring Him A 'Bad Character'

The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the Delhi Commissioner of Police in an appeal by Aam Aadmi Party MLA Amanatullah Khan challenging the opening of history sheet against him by Delhi Police in March last year declaring him as a 'bad character'.

The matter was before a division bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Dipankar Datta.  In the petition, Khan pointed out that he is neither a convict nor a proclaimed offender. However, as an elected representative and a mass leader who takes up the causes of the down-trodden, the petitioner has had run-ins with the Delhi police, the petition adds. As an instance, he mentions the case registered by the Delhi Police against him for protesting against the demolition of homes and shops by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation at his constituency in May 2022.

He alleged that the file containing the proposal to open a History Sheet against him was widely circulated in the social media with a mala fide intention to sabotage his bail hearing. The petitioner highlighted that he was discharged by the trial court in the case taken by the Delhi Police against him over the protests.

Out of the 18 cases which are cited to be basis for the opening of the history sheet, Khan says that he has been acquitted or discharged in 14 cases. In the remaining four cases, one relates to a Facebook status during the CAA protests; in another FIR, petitioner is not mentioned as an accused; the third one relates to his comments against Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati's comments on Islam religion. The petitioner argued that none of these FIRs indicate any offence involving moral turpitude. He further stated that the fourth FIR relates to a 2018 incident. In any case, history sheet cannot be opened on the basis of a solitary FIR, he argued.

In January 2023, the Delhi High Court had dismissed the plea by Khan granting him liberty to file a representation to the Delhi Police.

The case of the AAP MLA was that the act of Delhi Police of opening the history sheet was a brazen abuse of process of law and in contravention of the provisions of the Police Rules which states that there has to be confidentiality in the whole process. It has ben contended the Police Officials have exercised powers under the Police Rules in a perverse and malafide manner.

"Instead of notifying the petitioner, they have circulated it in the media. It shows the mala fide conduct of Delhi Police. It vitiates the process including names of family members," Advocate M Sufian Siddiqui appearing for Khan had argued before the Delhi High Court.

The Counsel for Khan had also previously submitted before the High Court that while the police is well within their powers to include the name of any person, the rider in the said exercise is that the DCP concerned has to record definite reasons. "As per their own circular issued by the DCP Headquarters, it mandates that the DCP concerned has to record reasons where there is no conviction," he had argued.

Amanatullah Khan was represented by Senior Advocate Sanjoy Ghose and Advocate Wajeeh Shafiq.

Case Title: Amanatullah Khan Versus The Commissioner Of Police, Delhi And Ors.

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