Setback for Central Government; JNU Students Released After Court Intervention

New Delhi: The Central Government’s attempt to keep JNU students in Tihar Jail despite being granted bail by the court has faced a setback, with the Patiala House Court ordering their immediate release from detention.

Fourteen students were taken into custody after marching from JNU to the Union Education Ministry on Thursday. Although the court granted them bail on Friday morning, the police did not release them immediately. Authorities argued that certain procedural formalities had to be completed before the students could be freed.

Following the delay, several organisations, including SFI, approached the court seeking urgent intervention for their release. While the matter was initially scheduled to be heard on Saturday, the hearing did not take place. The court subsequently took up the case urgently on Sunday, despite it being a holiday.

The court observed that once bail is granted, individuals cannot be kept in custody on the grounds of procedural delays. It reportedly termed the continued detention a “mockery of justice.”

Among those detained were JNU student union office bearers Aditi Mishra (President), K Gopika Babu (Vice President), and Danish Ali (Joint Secretary), who spent three days in Tihar Jail before being released.