On May 2, anti-CAA riots accused and Congress leader Sadaf Jafar shared a notice on the social media platform Twitter and alleged that the notice she received from the Uttar Pradesh government was against the Supreme Court judgment.
In her tweet, she said, “Received Eidi from Yogi Adityanath Ji. Despite the rebuke by Supreme Court, the protesters are being harassed in a malicious manner. Perhaps they do not know if we were cowards, we would have written apology against the Congress ideology.”
योगी आदित्यनाथ जी ने ईदी भेजी है।
— Sadaf Jafar (@sadafjafar) May 2, 2022
सर्वोच्च न्यायालय की फटकार के बावजूद द्वेषपूर्ण तरीके से आंदोलनकारियों को परेशान किया जा रहा है।
शायद उन्हें ये पता नहीं की डरपोक होते तो कांग्रेस की निर्भीक विचारधारा छोड़ कब का माफीनामा लिख दिया होता, pic.twitter.com/3Ixc6VQCeo
Jafar received notice for her role in the riots
The notice that Jafar has received is in connection with her alleged role in the Anti-CAA riots that took place on December 19, 2019, in Uttar Pradesh. The order stated, “As per Supreme Court’s order on February 11, 2022, the notice has been issued to you to recover the cost of the damages to the public property.” Jafar has been asked to appear in front of the court and tell the court why action should not be taken against her.
The notice had old dates, and it seems it was reissued on April 11, 2022. Jafar has claimed that the Supreme Court had ordered the state government not to recover money for the damages to the public property from the protestors. The information Jafar shared on her Twitter profile was a half-truth and an attempt to twist the reality. In reality, the court’s judgment narrates a whole different story.
The Supreme Court Judgment
On February 18, it was reported that the Supreme Court directed the UP government to refund the money it had recovered from people who destroyed the public during the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protests.
However, the court made it very clear to all that the government could issue fresh notices against the rioters and can re-attach the properties under the new law that was brought in by the UP government.
“The State as clarified is at liberty to proceed in accordance with the law that is the State legislation of 2021,” the court directed. This means the damages which were recovered can be recovered again by the State based on the outcome of the proceedings after issuing fresh notices under the Uttar Pradesh Recovery of Damages to Public Property Act, 2021, the court order stated.
Earlier the apex court had directed that all the notices issued for recoveries by the district administration should be withdrawn, and fresh notices under the Uttar Pradesh Recovery of Damages to Public and Private Property Act, 2020 could be issued.
To collect damages from rioters, the Uttar Pradesh government brought the Uttar Pradesh Recovery of Damages to Public and Private Property Act 2020. According to the law, the State would establish claims courts to examine and provide compensation for damages caused during protests, as well as to reimburse the costs of police and administrative actions taken to avoid damage to public property.
