The Free Speech Collective has filed a contempt petition before the Supreme Court alleging wilful disobedience of the Court’s October 11 order protecting journalists, lawyers and other professionals from obstruction while discharging their professional duties. The petition has been filed against the Union of India, the Delhi Government and the Delhi Police Commissioner.
The petition, filed under Article 129 of the Constitution read with Section 12 of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, seeks enforcement of paragraph 16(f) of the Supreme Court’s October 11 order, which stated that
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“lawyers, journalists and other professionals shall not be hindered in discharge of their professional duties in any manner whatsoever.”
The petitioner alleges that despite the direction, journalists covering protests in Delhi were detained, forcibly removed and obstructed while reporting from locations including R.K. Ashram Marg and Connaught Place. It relies on contemporaneous media reports, social media posts and videos documenting alleged incidents involving journalists from several media organisations.
The petition seeks identification of the police personnel allegedly responsible, disclosure of how the Court’s direction was communicated to officers deployed at the protest sites, preservation of relevant records and initiation of appropriate proceedings for alleged wilful disobedience.