Supreme Court Refuses Bail to DU Student Accused in Noida Workers’ Protest Violence Case

May 8, 2026 : The Supreme Court on Friday declined to grant bail to Aakriti Chaudhary, a student accused of inciting violence during the industrial workers’ protest in Noida on April 13, and advised her to approach the Allahabad High Court instead.

A Bench comprising Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan observed that litigants were increasingly filing petitions directly before the Supreme Court under Article 32 of the Constitution.

“Why don’t you go to high court? Everybody comes here by filing petition under Article 32 of the Constitution. There are 93,000 cases pending in the Supreme Court,” the Bench remarked during the hearing.

Counsel appearing for Chaudhary argued that the police had failed to provide the grounds of arrest to the accused and sought her release on bail. The counsel further informed the Court that Chaudhary is a student of Delhi University.

The Apex Court also issued notice to police officials on a plea filed by Keshaw Anand alleging torture by Uttar Pradesh police personnel.

Earlier, a Noida court had granted conditional police remand of three women accused in connection with the violence during the workers’ protest. The accused include Aakriti Chaudhary, Manisha Chauhan and Srishti Gupta. The court also permitted their lawyers to remain present during the investigation proceedings.

According to reports, Chaudhary and Gupta, both in their 20s, are residents of Delhi. Chaudhary holds a master’s degree in history from Daulat Ram College, while Chauhan works in an industrial unit in Noida.

In the remand application, the police stated that there was a “full possibility of getting important evidence from the place of residence of the accused.”

The protests erupted after factory workers from various industrial units in Noida demanded a revision in wages. Authorities alleged that the demonstration later turned violent, with some participants vandalising property, pelting stones and setting a vehicle on fire. (PTI)