Ensure Availability Of Forces Before Holding Colleges Fests Or Functions: High Court Directs Delhi Police

The Delhi High Court on Thursday directed the Delhi Police and Delhi University authorities to bolster police visibility And ensure that proper police force is available before a fest or function is organized in the institutions.

A division bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Sanjeev Narula also said both that the college and Delhi University administrations must work in concert with the police to establish protective protocols to ensure students' safety during such functions.

“To ensure the prevention of any future recurrence of such incidents, a two-pronged approach is required. First, the Commissioner of Police, in conjunction with the Vice-Chancellor of Delhi University, is directed to bolster police visibility and surveillance during college events,” the court said.

The court passed the order while disposing of a public interest litigation seeking inquiry by Central Bureau of Investigation into the alleged instances of molestation and sexual misconduct inside Delhi University’s Gargi College in 2020.

Delhi Government’s counsel Nandita Rao apprised the court that the Delhi Police has filed an untraced report in the matter as the girls could not identify who indulged in the acts of sexual harassment from seeing the CCTV footage. 

“Most of the girls did not come for 164 (statements recorded before Magistrate) as they have moved on in life,” Rao said.

It was also submitted that though the Police initially arrested a few boys, they could not be identified by the girl students. This is the handicap in criminal law, Rao said.

The court noted that while the girl students said that they were molested, not even a single person was identified and that none of the girls stated anything against any individual. Noting further that the matter is now listed before the concerned Metropolitan Magistrate of Saket Courts on August 23, the court ordered,

“In the considered opinion of this court, once the matter is pending before MM, Saket Court, New Delhi, no further orders are required to be passed in the PIL. The MM is free to proceed in accordance with law.”

However, the bench voiced its unease regarding the impending closure of a grievous incident without holding any individual accountable. Noting that the hesitancy on part of the witnesses to come forward to make statement needs to be addressed, the court said:

“The law enforcement agencies must instill confidence in them and assist them to come forward to make the necessary disclosures. The Witness Protection Scheme, 2018,1 ought to be leveraged to fortify the investigation and safeguard witnesses. It is crucial to scrutinize all available footage, especially those capturing the vehicles, given the evidence suggesting their significant role in the incident.“

The court said that the media reports alluding to the detention and subsequent release of certain individuals “necessitate a comprehensive follow-up” and thus, directed the concerned DCP to personally look into the matter and supervise the investigation.

The plea was moved by Advocate ML Sharma in the wake of alleged instances of molestation and sexual misconduct that took place on February 06, 2020, inside the college campus during their annual cultural fest “Reverie 2020.”

Sharma in his plea claimed that the said instances were carried out under a "planned conspiracy by the political parties" for "securing political game in Delhi election voting."

Citing alleged inaction by city police and college administration, the plea said, "The men came in trucks and entered the campus around 4:30 pm during the fest. They continued to harass the girls for several hours and the ordeal continued till around 9 pm...Despite complaints being made by multiple students, no one called the police and asked for the arrest of the wrongdoers."

Case Title: MANOHAR LAL SHARMA v. CENTRAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION (C.B.I) & ORS.

Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Del) 696

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