Thread by @LiveLawIndia

#SupremeCourt to hear case concerning alleged custodial torture of two protesters arrested during the Noida workers' protest.

the bench earlier directed the State of UT to produce the two persons before the Court physically.

ASG KM Nataraj: they are before the court

J Nagarathna: are they in judicial custody?, we just converted it in habeas corpus

Court interacts with the accused

Sr Adv Colin Gonsalves: they may ask for police custody, if you look at the torture. please see the petition.

Nataraj: entire seized before the magistrate

J Bhuyan: have they applied for bail?

Gonsalves: yes. Haryana police wants to take us immediately and then the UP police

J Nagarathna: for the same offence

Gonsalves: yes. they were present in noida

J Nagarathna: law has to take its course

Gonsalves: i am not asking for bail, just not police custody

J Nagarathna: we wanted to know if they are able to travel, their physical condition

Gonsalves: its being many days they have healed. they can be interrogated but it shouldn't be in police custody. I want an independent investigation on what police did to them.

Gonsalves: they took me at midnight, they asked me to pick something from the bushes which is a kerosene bottle. when the advocates went, all six advocates were caught by the throat outside the court and taken to an unidentified location. I just want a CBI investigation.

today i only want to not go into the hands of these policemen.

J Nagarathna:we are satisfied by their physical present. but at this stage you have not asked for the current prayer.

Gonsalves: i will cooperate fully. I am asking CBI to look into the allegations of torture. Not the agitation.

J Nagarathna: we will consider that later.

J Bhuyan: aap aage aajiye. ap kabse hai jail main? udhar kuch dikkat hai?

Accused: jabardasti mara peetha gaya hai

J Nagarathna: where were you?

Accused: i was in noida, for peaceful

J Nagarathna: what do you do?

Accused: i am a software engineer

J Nagarathna: what do you do for a living [to other accused?]

court is asking the accused persons if they have been tortured by the police

Accused is saying he was taken to unidentified location, his brother who is a petitioner was kidnapped.

J Nagarathna: we are satisfied these are the persons, let the judicial custody continue.

Gonsalves: any cooperation, we will ensure.

J Bhuyan: don't treat the workers like this

ASG: they are not workers. but every human is to be treated with dignity, we will ensure

order': brother of the petitioner and rupesh roy has been produced. we have learned the counsels, pending further consideration of this matter, we direct the judicial custody shall continue.

ASG: matter can be disposed of

J Nagarathna: pendency of this would not come in a way for the petitioners to seek regular relief in accordance with the law

Advocate Sharukh Alam: one journalist picked up, there has been staggered arrests since then. they have invoked preventive detention order against me on May 12. NSA Section 3.

J Nagarathna: detention order has not been challenged?

ASG: I have been told he filed habeas corpus in allahabad HC

Alam: in the high court at Lucknow, but I was told to go to Allahabad HC

J Nagarathna: go pursue, prayers are the same.

Alam: according to the order, he is in Gautam Buddha jail. i have been arrested in 3 FIRs, and one preventive detention order.

reads the detention order

Alam: they say through my idelogy, I keep provoking unrest

J Nagarathna: that day it was supposed to be a peaceful prtest but the violence

Alam: there is presumption that workers committed violence but I say I haven't

J Nagarathna: what did you do about the FIRs?

Alam; I have moved for bail

J Nagarathna: did you challenge detention order

Alam: I have come here for that.

J Nagarathna:approach criminal court. it should be in one forum.

Alam: the broader remedy is that the first reaction of protest is assuming workers did violence, there is no set of inquiry.

J Nagarathna: where were you that day?

Alam: they are saying I read books and write articles on labour law and that's the ground to arrest me. the process has become a punishment.

J Nagarathna: we can't grant interim relief, but we will issue notice

ASG: entire issue can be worked out before the high court

hearing concludes.