Delhi High Court seeks response from Delhi Police on plea to ensure all police stations have CCTV cameras

The Delhi High Court has sought a response from the Delhi Police and the Delhi government on a plea raising concerns that CCTV cameras are yet to be installed in all police stations despite Supreme Court directives to do so [Ajay vs State of NCT of Delhi]. .The petitioner claims that no CCTV cameras were installed at the Anti-Narcotics Task Force Crime Branch Office in Delhi, where he was placed under arrest in connection with an alleged recovery of narcotics from his shop.Apart from seeking the declaration of his arrest as illegal, he has also urged the Court to issue directions for the authorities to demonstrate that CCTV cameras have been installed in all police stations in Delhi. The Division Bench of Justice Navin Chawla and Justice Shail Jain has also sought a response in the matter from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), among other respondents. The Court on March 9 directed the authorities to file their response in three weeks..The petition was filed by one, Ajay, who recounted that he was arrested in a drugs case when he went to the Crime Branch Office for questioning. This was after three kilograms of Alprazolam were allegedly recovered from his shop. He later filed an application seeking the preservation and supply of CCTV camera footage from inside the Crime Branch office. The police official, however, replied that there was no CCTV camera installed in the office. He, therefore, filed a petition before the High Court flagging this lapse. The petition highlights that the 2021 Supreme Court judgment in Paramvir Singh Saini v. Baljit Singh makes the installation of CCTV cameras inside police stations mandatory.According to this judgment, if CCTV cameras are not available, the Station House Officer is required to report all arrests and interrogations conducted during such period to a District Level Oversight Committee. The petitioner added that neither were there any CCTV cameras in the station where he was arrested, nor was any report submitted about his arrest to the District Level Oversight Committee..Thus, Ajay has urged the Court to declare his arrest and custodial interrogation illegal and to conduct an enquiry into the matter. He has also urged the Court to direct the authorities to ensure compliance with the Supreme Court's 2021 judgment on the installation of CCTVs at police stations. The case will be heard next on April 30..The petition was filed through advocates Karan Verma, Nayan Maggo, Yuvraj Singh and Sulakshana.Advocates Karan Verma, Nayan Maggo and Yuvraj Singh appeared for Ajay. Standing Counsel (Criminal) Sanjay Lao with advocates Priyam Agarwal, Mr.Abhinav Kr. Arya, Mr.Aryan Sachdeva appeared for Delhi government.Central government standing counsel Neeraj Kumar with advocate Shashwat appeared for MHA. .[Read order]