The Supreme Court on Thursday indicated that it was not inclined to entertain the Chandigarh Administration’s challenge to the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s decision quashing the criminal case against Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and other AAP leaders arising out of a 2020 protest against the hike in electricity tariffs.

A Bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohana was hearing a case arising from an FIR registered after an AAP protest march in Chandigarh in 2020, during which the police alleged that demonstrators attempted to breach barricades and pelted stones, causing injuries to police personnel. The High Court had held that the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against Mann and the other accused and found no material linking them to the alleged acts of violence. This led to the Administration’s plea against the High Court judgment.

During the hearing, the Chandigarh Administration sought time to address certain technical objections concerning the batch of petitions. However, the Bench orally indicated that it was disinclined to interfere with the High Court’s ruling. On the Administration’s request to argue the matter on the merits, the Court adjourned the case for further hearing.