"Don't waste our time, and don't waste your time," Chief Justice Surya Kant stated, as the Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to hear a petition seeking intervention over alleged police action against student protesters during demonstrations demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the alleged NEET-UG 2026 paper leak.
The matter was mentioned before the Chief Justice-led bench after Advocate Narendra Mishra submitted a letter petition under Article 32 of the Constitution, seeking the Supreme Court's suo motu intervention into the alleged violation of fundamental rights during the protests.
The petition seeks an independent judicial inquiry, registration of FIRs against erring officials and consideration of electronic evidence submitted along with the plea.
During the mentioning, the counsel urged the court to list the matter for directions on Wednesday, arguing that the protests were taking place across the country and therefore were not confined to the territorial jurisdiction of the Delhi High Court.
The court, however, declined the request.
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When the lawyer referred to videos allegedly showing police excesses, the Chief Justice responded, "We don't have time. We don't want to watch videos."
According to the petition, more than 25 selected videos were submitted in a pen drive along with the letter petition. The petitioner alleged that the footage showed police and Rapid Action Force personnel using lathi charges, tear gas and other coercive measures against peaceful student protesters, and further alleged that persons in civilian clothing assaulted protesters with police support.
The petition urges the court to preserve electronic evidence, identify those allegedly involved and order an independent investigation into the allegations. However, the bench did not pass any substantive order on the allegations and refused to grant an urgent hearing.
The development comes a day after the Delhi High Court also declined to urgently hear a similar plea challenging the police action during the protests, observing, "Don't drag the Court into this."
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