New Delhi, 13 October (H.S.): Several petitions have been filed before the Supreme Court in connection with protests against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson and advocate Gaurav Bhatia, along with Mahesh Jethmalani, mentioned the matter before a Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, seeking an urgent hearing. Following their submissions, the court directed that the matter be heard on October 15.

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court also scheduled a hearing for October 15 on petitions alleging police excesses against lawyers, journalists and protesters during demonstrations against CEC Gyanesh Kumar in Delhi. The petitions also challenge the suspension of metro, railway and other public services in connection with the protests.

While determining the scope of the hearing, the court accepted the Central Government’s request and granted it time until Thursday to file its response.

The Supreme Court observed that the prevailing situation in Delhi and the various petitions concerning citizens’ rights would be heard together.

In its order dated October 9, the Supreme Court had stated that metro services, railway services and public movement should not be completely restricted.

On October 10, a contempt petition was filed before the Supreme Court alleging that the authorities had disobeyed the court’s directions, thereby amounting to contempt of court.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar