Delhi High Court Rejects Petition to Remove Police Officer Sandeep Lamba from Inquiry

The Delhi High Court dismissed a petition seeking to strip Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (North‑East) Sandeep Lamba of supervisory control over a court‑directed police inquiry. The petition was filed after a video allegedly showed Lamba slapping a woman during a July 20 protest at Jantar Mantar led by the CJP. Justice Girish Kathpalia ruled that allegations alone cannot establish a presumption of bias and that any wrongdoing must be addressed through due process, not by pre‑emptively removing the officer.

The court noted that the inquiry had already been completed, the petitioner’s statement recorded, and the report forwarded to the competent authority. It rejected further requests to transfer the case, emphasizing that removing Lamba would amount to declaring him guilty without a trial and would unfairly tarnish the entire Delhi Police.