Bravery award winner writes to CJI about children at protests

Days after the death of an infant at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh protest, National Bravery Award winner Zen Sadavarte wrote to the Chief Justice of India seeking directives to prevent children from participating in protests. Four-month-old Mohammed Jahaan died during the protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act at Shaheen Bagh in Delhi on January 30.

In a letter released to media outlets, the Class 7 student claimed that the incident was a violation of the deceased infant's right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution. Inclusion of children and infants in protests amounts to torture and cruelty, Zen stated in her petition.

The police had failed to take cognisance of the involvement of children in protests, she said, and appealed to the Apex Court to direct authorities to stop such involvement. The 12-year-old argued that organisers of the Shaheen Bagh protest and parents of the infant had failed to protect his rights.

Quoting a newspaper article in her petition, Zen pointed out that the infant's death certificate did not mention the cause of death and demanded a post-mortem to ascertain the same. Zen had received a National Bravery Award in 2019, for guiding 17 people to safety when a fire broke out at Parel's Crystal Tower.