Ex-bureaucrat moves court seeking FIR copy after Special Cell questioning

Former bureaucrat Ashish Joshi on Monday moved a Delhi court seeking a copy of an FIR in which he claims he was named as an accused, days after he was detained and questioned by the Delhi Police special cell for over nine hours over an alleged post on X

Former bureaucrat Ashish Joshi on Monday moved a Delhi court seeking a copy of an FIR in which he claims he was named as an accused, days after he was detained and questioned by the Delhi Police special cell for over nine hours over an alleged post on X.

Chief judicial magistrate Mridul Gupta of Patiala House Courts is likely to hear the application on Tuesday. (Photo for representation)

Chief judicial magistrate Mridul Gupta of Patiala House Courts is likely to hear the application on Tuesday.

Joshi, 60, represented by Aadil Singh Boparai, has sought directions to the SHO or investigating officer of the special cell to furnish him a copy of the FIR, alleging that despite repeated requests, the document was not provided to him.

According to his plea, two persons claiming to be special cell officers approached him near Nehru Park around 8.45am on September 2 while he was returning from his morning walk.

They allegedly told him to accompany them for questioning over a post from his X account and informed him that he had been arrayed as an accused.

Joshi said he accompanied the officials to the special cell police station and was detained and interrogated from around 9 am to 7 pm. He claimed that his repeated requests for a copy of the FIR during questioning were not acceded to.

The plea said Joshi submitted representations to the Delhi Police commissioner and the DCP, special cell, on September 3 seeking the FIR. More than 72 hours later, he claimed, neither the FIR nor any response had been received.

Joshi has argued that furnishing an FIR to a person named in it, or one who has reason to believe that he has been named, is a “legal right flowing from Article 21 of the Constitution and not a matter left to the discretion of the investigating agency”.

“The continued and unexplained denial of a copy of the FIR... has caused serious prejudice, uncertainty and hardship,” the plea said, adding that without the document, he was unable to ascertain the allegations against him or effectively seek legal remedies.

He has also claimed that no cognisable offence was committed by him warranting his detention and interrogation.