Tis Hazari Violence: No need to clarify order on no coercive steps against lawyers, Delhi HC

The Delhi High Court today stated that its earlier order dated November 3 protecting lawyers from coercive action in connection with FIRs registered in the aftermath of the Tis Hazari Violence on November 2 needed no clarification..The Court said that the order had already clarified that the protection was with respect to two FIRs ie. FIR no. 268 and 269 of 2019..A Division Bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar passed the order in a plea by the Ministry of Home Affairs seeking to clarify that the protection was extended only with respect to the two FIRs registered on November 2 after the Tis Hazari violence and not the subsequent events..The Court also heard a Delhi Police application seeking expansion of certain observations made by the Court in its para 15 of the November 3 order..These observations pertain to Court’s observations of the conduct of the Delhi Police ASIs and Top officials Harender Singh and Sanjay Singh on the day of the incident..The Bench today clarified that the observations in its order passed on November 3 would have no impact on the Inquiry Committee headed by Justice (Rtd), SP Garg..A scuffle broke out between lawyers and police personnel at Delhi’s Tis Hazari Court Complex on November 2 after an argument between a lawyer and the police over parking. The altercation soon escalated and resulted in serious violence in the Court Complex which included a lawyer getting shot..The Court soon took suo-moto cognizance of the matter and ordered a judicial inquiry headed by Justice (retd.) SP Garg into the Tis Hazari violence. While doing so, it also granted protection from coercive action against the lawyers in connection with the FIRs registered against them by Delhi Police..The tension between the Delhi Police and the lawyers in the city, however, did not diffuse. As lawyers across the district courts in the city have been abstaining from work since November 4, incidents of Delhi Police personnel, as well as litigants, being manhandled by them were reported from Saket and Karkardooma Court..Among various other things, the protesting Delhi Police personnel have sought the action against the delinquent lawyers and revocation of the order of suspension against two ASIs..It is also reported that the Delhi Police would be moving the High Court in review against the November 3 order..With these observations, the two applications were disposed of..Read the Order: