The Supreme Court will hear a batch of petitions on October 15 concerning the ongoing protests against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, restrictions on metro and rail services, the detention of lawyers and protesters, and the de-notification of Jantar Mantar as a protest site in Delhi.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana agreed to club the petitions for a joint hearing after accepting the Centre's request for additional time to file its responses.
The matters include a plea seeking contempt action against officials for allegedly violating the Supreme Court's October 8 order against imposing blanket restrictions on metro, railway services and public movement. Another petition challenges the Delhi Police Commissioner's October 11 order de-notifying Jantar Mantar as a protest venue and designating alternative sites, including Ramlila Maidan and Burari.
The court will also consider a petition filed by Rahul Gandhi and 10 other Opposition leaders seeking a halt to the SIR process and challenging what they described as unilateral decisions by the Election Commission. The petition is undergoing corrections to address procedural defects.
The Centre, Delhi Police and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) have been given time until Thursday morning to submit their responses and compliance reports.
During a special hearing on October 11, the Supreme Court had directed authorities not to completely shut metro stations unless there was a grave law-and-order threat, and said lawyers, journalists and petitioners must not be prevented from accessing courts. It also cautioned against a complete internet shutdown unless unavoidable.
The October 15 hearing is expected to address restrictions on protest venues, access to courts and the broader dispute surrounding the electoral roll revision.
