A Delhi court has granted bail to two Lucknow University law students accused of using abusive language against the Chief Justice of India (CJI), assaulting a Supreme Court security official, and disrupting court proceedings during a hearing earlier this month.

The accused, Prabal Pratap Singh, a third-year law student, and Chanderbhan, a second-year student, were arrested on July 11 following an incident that took place on July 10 in Court No. 13 of the Supreme Court, where they were appearing as petitioners-in-person.

According to a complaint filed by a Supreme Court security official, Singh became agitated during the proceedings, allegedly threw papers inside the courtroom, and hurled abusive and unparliamentary remarks at the Chief Justice of India.

The complaint further alleged that when security personnel attempted to intervene, Singh pushed and used criminal force against one of the officials, thereby obstructing him from performing his duties. Chanderbhan was accused of aiding and supporting Singh during the incident.

In its July 27 order, Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) Ravi of the Patiala House Courts strongly condemned the conduct of the two students. The Court observed that no litigant, irrespective of dissatisfaction with a judicial outcome or lack of legal representation, has the right to disrupt court proceedings by throwing papers or directing abusive language at the presiding judge, particularly the office of the Chief Justice of India.

The Magistrate cautioned that overlooking such behaviour could send a dangerous message that such conduct is acceptable within courtrooms.

At the same time, the Court noted that the Supreme Court—the institution whose dignity was allegedly undermined—had itself responded to the episode with remarkable restraint.

"An institution of the stature and permanence of the Supreme Court of India is not diminished by the intemperate conduct of a single agitated, unrepresented litigant. It is only appropriate that subordinate courts, in assessing the consequences that ought to flow from such conduct at the stage of bail, be guided by the same institutional restraint and equanimity that the highest court itself has demonstrated," the Court observed.

The Magistrate further held that while the language allegedly used by the accused was serious and unacceptable, it could not, by itself, justify prolonged pre-trial incarceration in a case involving offences that are otherwise non-heinous, particularly after the investigation had been substantially completed.

Making it clear that its observations were limited to deciding the bail plea and would not influence the trial on merits, the Court concluded that continued judicial custody of the accused was not legally warranted.

Accordingly, both Prabal Pratap Singh and Chanderbhan were released on bail.