Delhi court violence was a result of police collusion, says SC-appointed panel lawyer

A day after ugly scenes of scuffle were witnessed at the Patiala House Court on Wednesday, one of the members of the Supreme Court-appointed committee panel has claimed that the violence at Patiala House Court was result of police collusion.

Hitting out at Delhi Police for inaction, senior Advocate Rajeev Dhawan alleged that the security was put at risk owing to political reasons. "I have no difficulty in my mind about there being a police collusion. As we went inside, we were told that somebody who was barred entry into Patiala House Court by the SC, had a free walk. Registrar of the High Court asked the police to stop that man and arrest him. But the cops did not. If this is not collusion, I don't know what is," he said.

The six-member panel was constituted by the apex court to access the law and order breakdown at the Patiala House Court where Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union president Kanhaiya was to be produced. A group of lawyers thrashed another group of lawyers and even attacked Kanhaiya when he was brought to court. When the SC-appointed panel came to the court premises to assess the situation, they were also heckled by the lawyers.

Lawyer Vikram Chauhan, who has been accused of attacking mediapersons and JNU students, has claimed innocence, saying that those responsible for the violence at Patiala House Court were not his colleagues but students from the institute. Chauhan also added that people from JNU initiated the violence at Patiala House court and the lawyers just acted in defence.

"We did not hit any journalist, it was JNU students who hit journalists to divert the attention," he alleged.

He, however, reiterated that the lawyer fraternity would not tolerate anti-India slogans. "I have done nothing wrong. I will not let anyone shout slogans against India...JNU students came and started beating us and then we retaliated There is an FIR against me I will be part of investigation, I am not sacred," he said.

Chauhan further said, "They were raising pro-Pakistan slogans, they were wearing black coats and projected themselves as lawyers," claiming that was not a member of the BJP.

This comes even as the Bar Council of India on Thursday condemned the law and order breakdown at Patiala House Court in the national capital on Wednesday. Seeking probe into the incident, Bar Council of India chairman Manan Kumar Mishra said that if involvement of lawyers in the incident is found then licenses would be cancelled.