'Concocted story': Court drops NSA against student over Noida protest
What's the story
The Allahabad High Court has quashed the Noida Police's preventive detention of 25-year-old Delhi University graduate Aakriti Chaudhary under the National Security Act (NSA). The court described the state's case as a "concocted story." Chaudhary, a student activist, had been in custody for nearly five months after her arrest in connection with the April 2026 Noida workers' wage protests. She had approached the HC through a habeas corpus petition challenging her continued detention.
Compensation awarded
HC orders ₹5 lakh compensation to Chaudhary
The court, headed by Justice Atul Sreedharan and Justice Achal Sachdev, ordered a compensation of ₹5 lakh to be paid to Chaudhary to be recovered from the salaries of officials involved in her arrest, including the Station House Officer (SHO) and District Magistrate.
The Uttar Pradesh Police had invoked the NSA in May, claiming they had "strong electronic and videographic evidence" against Chaudhary for inciting violence during protests.
Evidence absence
Prosecution failed to produce any video footage
However, during the proceedings, the prosecution failed to produce any video footage or material evidence linking Chaudhary to violence or property damage.
The court had given a final deadline for the alleged video evidence, but officials couldn't produce it.
This led to the bench ordering punitive recovery from involved authorities' paychecks.
Procedural lapses
Major discrepancies in police records
The High Court also highlighted major discrepancies in police records regarding the sequence of Chaudhary's arrest.
The bench found that she was arrested before statutory notices under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) were prepared, indicating serious procedural lapses by law enforcement.
The court emphasized that peaceful protests are an essential part of democratic governance and isolated acts of violence during a rally can't justify arbitrary preventive detention.
Jail
Chaudhary will not walk free
Chaudhary, however, will not walk free, as she has been named in 11 FIRs, with charges including attempt to murder, intent to cause death or grievous harm during the incident, endangering life or personal safety, and criminal conspiracy.
Her counsel, Advocate Rajnish Yadav, said that while she has obtained bail in five cases, bail requests in six additional FIRs in which she has been named are yet to be heard by the HC.