NEET protests: SC panel to prioritise sexual assault complaints by women

The Supreme Court asked its enquiry panel to prioritise sexual assault complaints from women at the NEET protest. It has also sought an immediate interim report, sharpening scrutiny of alleged police excesses.The CJI said the High-Powered Enquiry Committee would take up on priority the complaints of sexual assault faced by protesters. (File Photo: ITG)The Supreme Court on Monday said the High-Powered Enquiry Committee set up to examine allegations of police violence during the NEET protests has been asked to take up, on priority, complaints of sexual assault faced by women protesters. The court said the panel had been requested to immediately submit an interim report on the issue.The clarification came when senior advocate Shobha Gupta urged the court to take suo motu cognisance of allegations of sexual assault and molestation of women during the July 20 protest at Jantar Mantar. She also asked the court to create a mechanism through which alleged victims could directly send their complaints for examination.A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana said the issue was already before the committee.The CJI said the High-Powered Enquiry Committee would take up on priority the complaints of sexual assault faced by protesters. Referring to the order passed last week, he said, "the committee has been requested to examine it on a priority basis, and immediately submit an interim report". Justice Bagchi also pointed out that an independent writ petition had been filed on the same cause and the committee had been asked to examine the issue.In her submissions, Gupta referred to reports and accounts of alleged assaults that were circulated widely on social media and said the allegations included a lathi being jabbed into a woman's buttocks. "I am beseeching the court to take suo motu cognisance of these instances," she said. Gupta urged that the alleged sexual assault cases be dealt with separately and on priority. She suggested that the court could appoint a district judge or designate another authority so that alleged victims could send complaints directly."I request that the sexual assault cases be taken up separately and that the court constitute, maybe not a committee, but appoint a district judge or designate someone so that the girls can actually send their complaints directly and those sexual assault cases can be taken up on a priority basis," she said.Gupta said her specific concern was how the high-powered committee would receive complaints from alleged victims."There should be an order providing an email ID and designating an officer to whom the complaints can be sent, and it should be given publicity," she submitted, saying such a mechanism would ensure that the allegations reached the committee.On August 20, the top court formed a five-member high-powered committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice R Subhash Reddy to examine allegations of police excesses against student protesters in Delhi and violence against police personnel.The committee also includes former Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice Ravi Shankar Jha, former Delhi High Court judge Justice Shalinder Kaur, former CBI director Rishi Kumar Shukla and retired Meghalaya DGP L R Bishnoi. It has been asked to examine police use of excessive force and violence against protesters, including the deployment of pellet guns, as well as the alleged use of force and violence by protesters against police officials and other security personnel.The Cockroach Janta Party-led Parliament march on July 20 saw clashes between protesters and security personnel, who used lathis and tear gas shells to disperse crowds. The student protests, which spread to several cities, centred on the demand for then Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation over irregularities in competitive examinations, including NEET.The agitation began at Jantar Mantar on June 20 and ended on July 25 after Pradhan resigned and the government accepted the CJP's other demands.- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Aug 24, 2026 14:16 IST