Overview
- A Rouse Avenue court found All India Mahila Congress president Alka Lamba guilty on May 25 for offences tied to a July 29, 2024 protest at Jantar Mantar and recorded its conviction in open court.
- The court convicted her under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for using criminal force to deter a public servant, obstructing public servants, disobeying a promulgated order, and causing obstruction in a public way.
- Prosecution evidence relied heavily on police video footage from the police photo section and oral testimony that said Lamba led demonstrators past permitted limits, crossed barricades and pushed police personnel.
- Arguments on the quantum of sentence are listed for early June (reported as June 4 or June 5) and the convictions carry a maximum custodial term reported up to two years for the main section cited.
- Lamba denies wrongdoing as protected protest, has a separate petition to quash the FIR pending before the Delhi High Court, and the case highlights tensions between the right to protest and policing of public-order restrictions with visible political consequences.