Delhi court refuses to stop proceedings against AAP MLA

A Delhi court has refused to drop charges against ex-MLA Alka Lamba for allegedly inciting a protest that breached police barricades in 2024.

A Delhi court on Friday refused to terminate legal proceedings against former Aam Aadmi Party MLA Alka Lamba, accused of allegedly leading a protest in 2024 wherein she is claimed to have incited fellow protestors to breach security barricades and assault police personnel.

AAP MLA Alka Lamba (Archive)

The order was passed by Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh of Rouse Avenue Court, while hearing a revision plea moved by Lamba, challenging a magistrate’s decision to frame charges against her on December 19 last year.

Referring to the videos of the incident, the court noted, “The videos indicate that the revisionist not only jumped the first barricade but also instigated other protestors to jump the barricades through her gestures, and ultimately succeeded in instigating them to do so”.

The court also acknowledged that police kept announcing through loudspeakers, warning protestors against breaking barricades but Lamba kept instigating them.

The case arose from an incident that took place on July 29, 2024, when the President of National Women President Congress had called for a protest at Jantar Mantar in support of women reservation, wherein Lamba is alleged to be the main speaker.

The FIR alleges that at around 1:30 PM, Lamba along with other protestors tried to breach the first line of barricades that connected to Tolstoy Road, and raised slogans allegedly stating their objective to gherao the parliament.

Even as the deployed police force warned them against breaking the barricades in view of a prohibitory order in place, the protestors, the FIR claimed, refused to budge and went on to break the second line of barricades. Lamba, police claimed, incited protestors all along while jumping over barricades even as loud hailers were used by police to disperse the crowd.

Holding the matter to be a prima facie case to proceed against, the magistrate had directed charges under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) section 132 (assault or criminal force used to deter a public servant from discharging their duty), 221 (obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions), 223(a) (offence of disobeying a public servant’s order) and 285 (danger or obstruction in public way), against Lamba, the only protestor to be booked in the matter.

Special Judge Singh, in Friday’s order, said that the magistrate’s order was neither erroneous nor perverse, as it had rightly held that a prima facie case existed against the accused and that at the stage of charge, the judicial principle of ‘proof beyond a reasonable doubt’ is not applied as is the case in a trial and merely sufficient grounds to proceed are studied.

Perusing the trial court’s records, the Special Judge noted that besides videos, there were witness statements wherein constables posted at the spot corroborate that Lamba incited women protestors to leave Jantar Mantar and reach the parliament to gherao the premises in a bid to further their demands. While jumping over barricades, the protestors also pushed several male and woman officers, the court noted.

The court said that the protestors further made their way to the parliament street and blocked the road, causing inconvenience to the public.

The prosecution, led by Additional Public Prosecutor Manish Rawat, told the court that the offence took place despite an undertaking given by the protest’s organiser that the demonstration will not disrupt public order or violate prohibitory orders.