The Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday rebuked an Executive Magistrate posted in Greater Noida for allegedly issuing a notice to a student over his alleged participation in the protests led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) in July this year. The top court questioned how such action could be initiated despite its clear order shielding protests from coercive action. 

Expressing strong dismay, the court asked how an Executive Magistrate could issue the notice when it had already quashed all the FIRs against students in connection with the CJP stir and expressly barred any future coercive action against them.

The angry court remarked, “How could the magistrate issue the notice? Our order was clear that no coercive action can be taken against any student across the country. How dare a magistrate do that?”

SC passed order on September 1

The development comes days after the SC, on September 1, 2026, invoked its extraordinary powers under Article 142 of the Indian Constitution to quash all cases against students arising from the CJP protests. 

The court had issued orders that FIRs registered between July 20 and 25 across states and Union territories in connection with the protests would not be pursued or probed and would be treated as closed for all purposes. 

Adding to its directives, the court had ordered that no fresh action should be initiated against any student in relation with the protests. Against this backdrop, the notice issued by the Greater Noida Executive Magistrate to a student on September 4 came under the court’s scrutiny.

Notice withdrawn a day later

Senior advocate Bishwajit Bhattacharya brought the matter to SC’s attention. Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant said the court would seek an explanation from the Gautam Buddh Nagar district and executive magistrates over the notice issued to the student. 

One Akshat Tripathi had been served the notice on September 4, who is a second-year student at Gautam Buddh University. However, the notice was withdrawn the following day. Tripathi, in the notice, had allegedly been accused of spreading anti-government information and encouraging students to join the CJP protest at Jantar Mantar. 

‘An experiment with the students of India’

Calling the incident an ‘experiment’ with the students of India, advocate Bhattacharya pleaded with the apex court to intervene and ensure that similar incidents were not repeated. CJI Kant agreed with the submission and expressed surprise at the action taken by the official concerned, despite the court’s earlier directive. 

The CJI asserted, “We are surprised how an executive magistrate or a district magistrate can issue a notice when our September 1 order was clear that no action can be taken against our youth for participating in the protest.”