Noida District Magistrate Gets Relief, Supreme Court Pauses Rs 5 Lakh Compensation

The Supreme Court has provided major relief to Gautam Buddha Nagar District Magistrate Medha Roopam, who had been held accountable by the Allahabad High Court over a student activist's detention under the stringent National Security Act for her alleged role in the labourers' unrest in Noida a few months ago.

A bench of Justices SC Sharma and NK Singh has paused the high court order directing her to pay compensation of Rs 5 lakh from her salary to the student activist, Akriti Chaudhary.

The top court also stayed the operation of the judgment that quashed Chaudhary's detention.

Read: "Orwellian Dystopia": Court's Stinging Order On Noida District Magistrate, Frees Activist

"After hearing learned senior counsels for the parties, this court is of the opinion that till the matter is heard on merits, the operation of the impugned judgment, particularly, para nos. 27 to 33 shall remain stayed," the bench said in its order.

In the said paras, the high court had warned Roopam that continued "despotic" conduct by "errant" bureaucracy could reduce Uttar Pradesh to an Orwellian dystopia. An Orwellian dystopia refers to a society under severe government control, characterised by mass surveillance and the manipulation of truth.

The top court was hearing two petitions filed by Roopam and the State of Uttar Pradesh, during which arguments were made as to whether the DM could be held liable for the activist's detention.

During the hearing, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who was representing Uttar Pradesh, and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for Roopam, argued that the DM's action came on the material placed before her after it had gone through several levels of police administration, including the Commissioner.

The court then orally observed that it "cannot isolate her" and make her face the Rs 5 lakh liability for a decision that followed a multi-level process. It also questioned the material supporting the decision, noting that Roopam wasn't the only authority involved.

Chaudhary, a history graduate from Delhi University, was among several activists arrested in April in connection with the workers' protests for higher wages in Noida.

In September, the high court quashed her detention, noting that her incarceration under the NSA violated her fundamental right under Article 21 (right to life and personal liberty).

The court had also made strong observations against Roopam and the Noida administration and directed the DM to pay Rs 5 lakh as compensation from her salary to the activist.