High Court defers adoption of proceedings in Charles Bissue’s trial to October 26

The Delhi High Court recently rejected a petition requesting the city's police and Rapid Action Force (RAF) to be mandated to wear body-worn cameras (BWCs) during crowd-control and protest scenarios. The court's acting chief justice, Nitin Sambre, along with justice Arun Bhardwaj, affirmed that there were "no grey areas" regarding the utilization of such cameras.The court stated that enacting a judicial order in this matter could have significant repercussions.

They argued that the legislature had already incorporated specific statutory provisions whenever it intended to regulate the practice. The court questioned why directing the police to legislate was necessary when statutory provisions were already in place. Furthermore, the court emphasized that their primary concern was not limited to the Delhi police, but rather the broader policing system, which would have extensive implications if a judicial order were issued.The court, however, instructed the central government to review the petition filed by Chahat Raghav, a practicing advocate.

Raghav requested a timeline for the development of a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) regarding the storage, integrity, retention, and evidentiary use of footage captured by the cameras. The court granted six months for the Centre to address the petition, which also sought an SOP governing the aforementioned aspects.After hearing both sides, the Centre's lawyer, additional solicitor general Chetan Sharma, and standing counsel Ashish Dixit informed the court that an SOP was already in place specifically for protests at Jantar Mantar, including provisions for videography.

The lawyers argued that since the petitioner was seeking further modifications to the SOP, they could make a representation to the relevant authorities, which could then be considered by the appropriate professional body. Sharma emphasized that concerns of misuse and potential abuse needed to be taken into account.The petitioner, Chahat Raghav, claimed to have personally attended protests at Jantar Mantar, raising concerns about the inconsistent use of BWCs.

Raghav's lawyer, Akhil Sibal, argued that a comprehensive framework was necessary, considering the various protests that had occurred since 2020, including recent demonstrations by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP). Sibal contended that such direction would establish accountability, as allegations of excessive force by the police or violent protests by protesters would no longer be left to unverified private individuals.