Delhi High Court Dismisses PIL for Parliament Security Review
The Delhi High Court has turned down a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that called for a comprehensive assessment of Parliament’s security arrangements. The court’s decision, delivered on Wednesday by a bench consisting of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia, emphasized that there were no extraordinary circumstances justifying judicial intervention in this matter.
Chief Justice Upadhyaya made clear that the court would not dictate how Parliament should handle its security, and he expressed concern over the misuse of PILs for publicity. “What kind of a petition is this? You think Parliament is incapable of taking care of its own security? Now we are going to issue directions as to how this is to be done? Whatever comes to your mind, you may carry a very good suggestion, but that cannot become a matter of PIL. Everybody is into PIL just for publicity,” he remarked.
The petition was brought forth by advocate Raj Singh, who argued that in a democracy, the security of Parliament is of utmost importance. However, the Chief Justice countered that individual security is equally crucial and that the court did not require “a lecture” on the importance of parliamentary democracy.
Singh’s petition referenced past incidents, such as the 2001 Parliament attack and the 2023 Lok Sabha security breach, as well as recent mobilization attempts by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protests. He suggested that these incidents highlighted the need for ongoing evaluation and updating of Parliament’s security measures. Singh also pointed to emerging threats like cyber intrusions, AI-driven misinformation, and drone technology.
In his plea, Singh had prepared a concept note titled “Proposed Outline of the Parliament of India (Security, Sanctity, and Protection) Act, 2026,” and requested that the government consider and act upon his recommendations. Chief Justice Upadhyaya questioned the appropriateness of seeking a court directive for the government to review a document prepared by an individual.
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Ultimately, the court dismissed the plea, with Chief Justice Upadhyaya stating, “No direction sought in the PIL can be granted. The safety and security of Parliament is to be looked into by the government. As far as directions sought in relation to reviewing its administrative, institutional, operational, technological, and cyber-security mechanisms in light of evolving security challenges and emerging threats, is concerned, we again find ourselves at a loss of words as to how such directions can be issued because it is for Parliament to consider these issues and review the mechanism.”
The court concluded that it was not within its purview to mandate the government to examine a concept note prepared by an individual. As a result, the petition was dismissed, with the court reiterating that such matters should be addressed by the appropriate governmental and legislative bodies, not the judiciary.
