New Delhi: All India Students Association (AISA) President Neha Bora has firmly refused to sign a ‘peace bond’ issued by the Special Executive Magistrate (SEM). Questioning the rationale behind the police notice, the student leader sharply asked the authorities, “Whose peace am I being asked to maintain?”
The development comes a day after the Delhi High Court dismissed Bora’s petition challenging the police notice. The directive had instructed her to furnish a personal bond of Rs 10,000 and sign a peace bond. While rejecting her plea on Friday, the court instructed the SEM to provide Bora with the relevant documents and material that formed the basis for issuing the notice. Following the court’s order, the SEM has handed over the necessary documents to her.
Defending her right to dissent, Bora asserted on Saturday that protesting peacefully on the streets is a fundamental democratic right. She questioned how raising legitimate concerns against the government could be categorised as a “threat to peace.”
“If we do not ask questions of the government, whose peace are we maintaining?” Bora asked, emphasising that the right to disagree and question those in power is a core component of a functioning democracy. She further stated that regardless of the trajectory of her fight against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, the fundamental right to register dissent should never be branded as a public order violation.
The sequence of events began on October 16, when the Delhi Police detained Bora while she was participating in the ‘Lehra Do Tiranga’ march in the national capital. The protest was organised to demand the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Subsequently, on October 17, a notice was issued under Section 126 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). The notice directed Bora to appear before the SEM on October 19 to explain why she should not be required to sign the peace bond and furnish the monetary surety to ensure good behaviour during the investigation period.
In her High Court challenge, Bora had argued that the police action was an attempt to suppress peaceful, democratic opposition, noting that the notice failed to establish any imminent likelihood of a breach of peace.