By Karmrath News Desk
Delhi, India: Nine members of the India Youth Congress (IYC) secured bail from a Delhi court on Sunday in connection with a ‘shirtless’ protest staged during the India AI Impact Summit on February 20, while the bail plea of another accused was rejected.
Duty Magistrate Ravi granted relief to nine accused persons, directing them to furnish bail bonds of Rs. 25,000 each with one surety. The bonds are scheduled to be submitted on Monday. Those granted bail include Krishna Hari, Kundan Yadav, Narsimha Yadav, Ajay Singh, Saurabh, Arbaz Khan, Ajay Kumar Vimal, Raja Gujar, and Jitendra Yadav.
During the hearing, Delhi Police opposed the bail applications, arguing that the protest had been intentionally carried out at the summit venue rather than at officially permitted demonstration sites such as Jantar Mantar. Police told the court that the protesters wore shirts displaying the message: “India compromised with America”.
Lawyers representing the accused contended that the individuals had already undergone nine days of interrogation and that further detention was unwarranted. The defence also argued there was no likelihood of the accused fleeing the country or interfering with evidence.
Police, however, requested custodial remand for one accused, Siddharth Avdhoot, while seeking judicial custody for the remaining nine. Senior advocate Tanvir Ahmed Mir, appearing for the accused, argued against continued detention and sought bail, stating, "Bail is the rule, jail is the exception." He further submitted that there was no flight risk.
"There is no apprehension of tampering with evidence, as this case emanates from a simple protest," he said. The senior advocate further submitted that "there is apprehension of no influence of the complainant, who is a police officer and also the investigating officer and he cannot be intimated. No public person had filed the complaint."
According to Delhi Police submissions, the accused allegedly raised anti-national slogans in the presence of international media representatives. Police also alleged that officers attempting to intervene were attacked and claimed the slogans were intended to “tarnish the country’s image”.
Additional Public Prosecutor (APP) Atul Shrivastav, appearing along with Advocate Prashant Prakash, opposed bail for all ten accused. He urged the court to send nine accused to judicial custody and grant four days’ police custody for Avdhoot. Senior police officials, including a joint CP, DCP, ACP and members of the crime branch investigation team, were present during the proceedings.
APP Shrivastav argued that the incident could not be treated as a simple protest, stating it had been organised by members of a political party during an ongoing international summit when administrative machinery was fully engaged. He said the protest brought a badlight to the country.
"The accused belongs to one of the oldest political party. You should have acted in a proper manner. They should have organised the protest at some other place like Jantar Mantar," APP Shrivastav submitted. "In a democratic country, is the way to go there in an international event to do a protest," APP questioned. "The rights of freedom and expression are subject to lawful restrictions."
"International relations going to be affected, a place where international leaders and international media was there, you chose that place," APP Shrivastav submitted. Delhi Police maintained that the demonstration did not fall within the nature of a permissible protest.
Police told the court that on February 20, a group of men entered Bharat Mandapam wearing jackets and sweaters over T-shirts printed with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s image. They allegedly removed the outer clothing and began raising slogans inside the venue.
Investigators further claimed the protest was pre-planned rather than spontaneous, alleging structured role allocation, concealment methods and coordinated movement after the incident. A total of 14 IYC members and office-bearers were arrested in the case, of whom five remain in custody.