All India Students’ Association (AISA) president Neha Bora has moved the Delhi High Court challenging a police notice directing her to furnish a personal bond of ₹10,000 and one surety to “maintain peace during the period of inquiry” following her participation in a protest demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Why has Neha Bora challenged the police notice?
Its convenor, Abhijeet Dipke, had announced a flag march after party co-convenors Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were arrested for allegedly unfurling the national flag at Jantar Mantar earlier in the week. It came a day after she was detained during a flag march near Mandi House in New Delhi. The petition challenges both the requirement to furnish the bond and the grounds cited by the police to anticipate a breach of peace. The agitation also involved the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP). Both were subsequently remanded to five days of judicial custody. Following her release, she criticised the police action and questioned the legal basis for keeping protesters in custody overnight. The High Court petition now challenges the police directive requiring her to furnish the bond, as well as the justification for the preventive action taken against her following the protest.
The notice was issued on October 17 by a district police officer acting as a Special Executive Magistrate (SEM), directing Bora to appear and execute the bond. She had called for a peaceful gathering at Mandi House at 5 pm on October 16 and was detained from there, according to her petition. Her legal team plans to seek an urgent hearing this week, although the Delhi High Court is on vacation until October 25.
