The Allahabad High Court has sharply criticised Gautam Buddha Nagar District Magistrate Medha Roopam over the detention of Delhi University student and activist Aakriti Chaudhary under the National Security Act (NSA). The court quashed the detention order and directed that ₹5 lakh be paid to Chaudhary as compensation, with the amount to be recovered from the salaries of the officials found responsible, including the district magistrate and officers involved in the case.
Chaudhary was arrested in connection with the April 2026 workers’ protests in Noida. The Uttar Pradesh government subsequently invoked the NSA against her, alleging that she had played a role in instigating violence during the agitation. However, after examining the material placed before it, the High Court found that the authorities had failed to produce credible evidence showing that Chaudhary had encouraged rioting, arson or destruction of property.
The bench of Justices Atul Sreedharan and Achal Sachdev was particularly critical of the manner in which the detention order had been passed. It observed that where a police report contains allegations without sufficient supporting material, the district magistrate is expected to examine the evidence "threadbare" before invoking a stringent preventive detention law such as the NSA.
The court described the conduct of the district magistrate as "worthy of derision" and observed that Roopam appeared to have "desired to set an example" out of Chaudhary in order to deter others from exercising their right to protest. The bench also stressed that the NSA is an exceptional measure and cannot be used as a substitute for ordinary criminal law.
The court also pointed to discrepancies surrounding Chaudhary’s arrest and the subsequent paperwork. According to the order, the state claimed that she was arrested on April 12, while the material before the court suggested that she had been taken into custody a day earlier. The bench further questioned the timing of a notice issued under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), suggesting that the procedure may have been completed retrospectively.
In one of its strongest observations, the High Court warned that excessive use of state power could push Uttar Pradesh towards an "Orwellian Dystopia". It reminded bureaucrats and police officers that their "loyalty is towards the Constitution and not the political executive" and emphasised that public officials are ultimately accountable to citizens in a democracy.
The court also defended the constitutional protection available to peaceful protest, observing that people cannot be prevented from gathering in public spaces and raising their demands merely on the assumption that such gatherings could disturb public order. It said that curtailing such rights without adequate cause or due process would amount to an excessive exercise of state authority.
Who is Medha Roopam?
Medha Roopam is a 2014-batch IAS officer of the Uttar Pradesh cadre and is currently the District Magistrate of Gautam Buddha Nagar. She became the district’s first woman DM after taking charge in July 2025. Before her current posting, she served as district magistrate of Hapur and Kasganj and also worked as Additional Chief Executive Officer of the Greater Noida Authority.
Roopam graduated in Economics from St Stephen’s College, Delhi University, and secured a top rank in the Civil Services examination. She is also a national-level rifle shooter and has won three gold medals at the Kerala State Shooting Championship. She is the daughter of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, a fact that has brought additional public attention to her during the controversy surrounding the Noida workers’ protests.
The High Court has further directed that its displeasure with the district magistrate and police officials involved in preparing the detention dossier be recorded in their service records. While the NSA detention has been quashed, Chaudhary remains in judicial custody in connection with the underlying criminal cases, as her bail pleas in those matters have not all been granted.
