The Supreme Court has stayed an Allahabad High Court ruling that directed Gautam Buddh Nagar District Magistrate Medha Roopam to pay Rs 5 lakh from her personal salary as compensation for detaining a student under the National Security Act.
A bench comprising Justices Satish Chandra Sharma and N. Kotishwar Singh issued notice on Roopam’s petition and also put on hold the high court’s decision to quash the detention of 25-year-old student Akriti Chaudhary. Acting on two separate petitions submitted by Roopam and the Uttar Pradesh government, the apex court paused the adverse judicial remarks recorded against the officer, staying paragraphs 27 through 33 of the high court judgment pending a substantive hearing scheduled for October 7.
Hearing on State and Administrative Pleas
During the virtual proceedings, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta argued on behalf of the district magistrate, while senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi represented the Uttar Pradesh administration. Senior advocate Collin Gonsalves appeared on caveat for Chaudhary. The bench heard submissions from Mehta and Rohatgi before placing the video conference audio on mute to conclude the interim directions.
The legal dispute follows a September 2 judgment by the Allahabad High Court that set aside Chaudhary’s detention under the stringent preventive law. Chaudhary, a Delhi University history graduate, was taken into custody following an April demonstration in Noida where workers demanded higher wages. Uttar Pradesh Police subsequently invoked the National Security Act against her and activist-journalist Satya Verma on May 13.
High Court Findings and Strictures
In allowing Chaudhary’s habeas corpus plea, the high court held that the detention rested on an account fabricated by the state authorities and directed her prompt release provided she was not required in any other criminal matter.
The high court severely reprimanded Roopam for sanctioning the detention, warning that unchecked authoritarian conduct by administrative personnel risked steering the state toward a repressive regime. Alongside mandating that the Rs 5 lakh compensation be deducted from the earnings of Roopam and other involved officials down to the station house officer level, the high court ordered that formal censure be entered into their service records.
Addressing administrative conduct, the high court noted that while officials wield extensive statutory authority to safeguard the rights and welfare of citizens, their primary allegiance remains to the Constitution rather than the political executive. It affirmed that public officers function as servants to the citizenry, who remain the sovereign authority in a democratic system.
Following that ruling, the Solicitor General informed the Supreme Court on September 9 that the state would challenge the decision to quash the detention order, culminating in Wednesday’s interim stay.
