Supreme Court Adjourns Hearing on Appeal Challenging Relief Granted to Bhagwant Mann and Other AAP Leaders

The Supreme Court of India on Friday deferred the hearing on a petition filed by the Chandigarh Administration challenging the decision of the Punjab and Haryana High Court that had quashed an FIR registered against Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Cabinet Ministers Aman Arora and Harpal Singh Cheema, along with several senior leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party, in connection with a 2020 protest. The case relates to a protest march held in Chandigarh on January 10, 2020, against the hike in electricity tariffs. At the time, Chandigarh Police had registered an FIR against Bhagwant Mann, Aman Arora, Harpal Cheema, Baljinder Kaur, Manjit Singh Bilaspur and Sarvjit Kaur Manuke, among others, accusing them of inciting violence and rioting during the demonstration. Nearly six years after the FIR was registered, the Punjab and Haryana High Court, on November 29, 2025, quashed the FIR, chargesheet and all related proceedings against the AAP leaders. The High Court had observed that there was no valid reason for the police to stop the protesters, as no prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC were in force in the area at that time. The court also noted that none of the alleged stone-pelters had been identified in the FIR and there was no evidence suggesting that the petitioners had instigated the violence. The matter came up before a bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M. Pancholi. The hearing was adjourned after the Chandigarh Administration sought additional time to file petitions against certain other accused linked to the same case. Representing the Union Territory Administration, Tushar Mehta and S. V. Raju argued that the names of other respondents who had earlier been granted relief by the High Court needed to be included in the petition. Responding to the request, the Chief Justice said, “We will list it. An application for impleadment of other respondents may be filed.” The FIR had been registered at Sector 3 Police Station in Chandigarh based on a complaint filed by a woman constable under Sections 353, 332, 147 and 149 of the IPC. According to the complaint, protesters allegedly attempted to break police barricades and pelted stones at police personnel after being stopped from moving towards the official residence of the then Chief Minister, resulting in injuries to several officers. The next hearing in the Supreme Court is now expected to determine the future course of the Chandigarh Administration’s appeal in the matter.