- HC calls the state’s case a “concocted story”
- Aakriti Chaudhary was detained under NSA for around five months
- Court orders her release if not required in another case
- ₹5 lakh compensation ordered following the unlawful detention
GG News Bureau
Prayagraj, 7th Sept: The Allahabad High Court has quashed the National Security Act (NSA) detention of 25-year-old Delhi University graduate Aakriti Chaudhary in connection with the Noida workers’ protest of April 2026. The court described the state’s case as a “concocted story.”
A division bench of Justices Atul Sreedharan and Achal Sachdev allowed Chaudhary’s habeas corpus petition and directed her immediate release if she was not required in any other case. She had remained in custody for around five months.
The court’s decision followed scrutiny of the circumstances surrounding her arrest and the notices issued under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). The bench had also sought video evidence regarding allegations that Chaudhary had instigated protesters to engage in stone-pelting and arson.
Chaudhary, a history graduate from Delhi University, was arrested in connection with the workers’ agitation in Noida, which later witnessed incidents of stone-pelting, vandalism and arson. The Uttar Pradesh Police subsequently invoked the NSA against her.
The court also directed payment of ₹5 lakh compensation to Chaudhary, according to her counsel and multiple reports on the judgment.
The ruling has drawn attention to the judicial scrutiny of preventive detention and the safeguards governing the use of the NSA.
