All India Students' Association (AISA) president Neha Bora on Thursday challenged in the Delhi High Court a police notice asking her to execute a "peace" bond before a special executive magistrate, saying citizens don't need permission to hoist the national flag.
The submission was made while referring to the Delhi Police notice which said that Bora hoisted the national flag without seeking permission.
"Question is does this (notice) have substance? We don't need permission to hoist the national flag. They need a class on law," senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, representing Bora, contended before Justice Subramonium Prasad.
Senior advocate Sankaranarayanan told the court that Bora was detained barely 10 to 15 minutes after reaching Mandi House on the evening of October 16. He argued that she had not committed any offence, including a breach of peace, on that date.
Referring to a social media post announcing a gathering at Mandi House at 5 pm, Sankaranarayanan said the post merely stated, "see you today at 5 PM."
He argued that the post did not contain any call for violence, an attempt to disturb public peace or an invitation to gather to commit an offence.
"The original order passed did not include any of these areas," the lawyer said, referring to the grounds cited in the notice.
Sankaranarayanan also referred to a press conference held on October 15 and a social media post published the following day, arguing that Bora's activities had been peaceful.
Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma, representing Delhi Police, raised objection on the maintainability of Bora's petition.
Bora, who has been at the forefront of protests against the alleged irregularities in the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, has sought quashing of the notice and directions to the police not to take any coercive action against her.
The notice, issued on October 17 under Section 126 Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), asked the student leader to appear before the SEM (special executive magistrate) on October 19 and show cause why she should not execute a personal bond of Rs 10,000 with one surety "for keeping peace for a period of enquiry".
Section 126 empowers the SEM to enforce such bond signing if there is credible information that a person is likely to breach peace, disturb public tranquillity, or commit a wrongful act that may cause disturbance.
Bora was taken into preventive detention on October 16 when she was on her way to join the Cockroach Janta Party's (CJP) 'Lehra Do Tiranga' march. She was released on October 17.