Delhi Court Clears Trinamool Congress Leaders in Election Commission Protest Case

Court Discharges TMC Leaders

On Thursday, a court in Delhi discharged ten leaders from the Trinamool Congress, including notable MPs Derek O’Brien, Sagarika Ghose, and Saket Gokhale, in connection with a protest that occurred outside the Election Commission's office last year, despite existing prohibitory orders.

The ruling was issued by Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Neha Mittal at Rouse Avenue Court.

Other leaders who were also discharged include Mohammad Nadimul Haque, Dola Sen, Vivek Gupta, Arpita Ghosh, Santanu Sen, Abir Ranjan Bishwas, and Sudip Raha.

In April 2024, this ten-member delegation from the Trinamool Congress staged a protest against the operations of central investigative agencies, such as the Central Bureau of Investigation, the National Investigation Agency, the Enforcement Directorate, and the Income Tax Department.

The party raised alarms over what they claimed was the misuse of these agencies by the Union government, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party, to target opposition parties in the lead-up to the Lok Sabha elections.

According to the Delhi Police, the protest was conducted without the necessary permissions and breached Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which restricts gatherings of four or more individuals under specific circumstances.

The police contended that the accused continued their protest despite being made aware of the prohibitory orders, leading to the registration of a first information report.

Previously, the court acknowledged the chargesheet submitted by the police on April 21 and summoned the accused individuals.

On April 30, the court exempted all accused from personal appearance, with the exception of Gupta, and subsequently granted them bail on May 13.