The Allahabad High Court judgement of September 2, castigating the Uttar Pradesh police and senior bureaucracy for imposing the brutal National Security Act (NSA) on student leader Akriti Choudhury, who was among the leaders of the April Noida labour unrest for higher wages, has to be welcomed.

What followed the labour strike was a brutal assault resulting in the unprecedented arrest of over 200 labourers and some leaders, including Akriti, under stringent laws.

The court not only quashed the application of NSA but, in a rare instance, awarded a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to Akriti to be paid by the District Magistrate and senior police officers all the way down to the SHO.

Court Rebukes........

© Free Press Journal