"Will Not Be Signed By AISA, Will Not Be Signed By Me": Neha Bora Refuses Peace Bond A Day After Delhi HC Dismissed Her Plea

"Whose peace am I being asked to keep?" Bora asked, questioning the basis of the notice.

Bond "in contradiction to our right to democratic dissent", says Bora

Speaking to the press at the CPI(ML) Liberation Parliamentary office in Delhi, Bora set out why she would not sign.

"The peace bond, as it is being interpreted and executed today, will not be signed by AISA, will not be signed by me, because as it stands now, it is in contradiction to our right to democratic dissent," she said.

She said that demonstrating peacefully on the streets is a democratic right, and questioned how raising concerns against the government could be construed as a threat to peace. "If we do not ask the government any questions, whose peace are we keeping?" she asked, stressing that the right to question those in power and to express dissent is fundamental to a democracy.

Bora said she would continue to contest the proceedings in court. "We will go before the SCM. We will hope that the SCM implements the High Court's order and the security that has been provided to us therein, and rightfully so, the insistence on upholding the principles of natural justice," she said.

"We hope that the courts of the land will see that the execution and interpretation of these bonds is in contradiction to our fundamental right to democratic dissent. And this is what we hope, and that is why we wage a battle in the courts," she added.

The terms of the High Court's order, including any directions it may contain, are not yet available.

The Delhi Police issued the notice on 17 October under Section 126 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS), which allows an Executive Magistrate to call on a person to show cause why they should not be ordered to execute a bond for keeping the peace. It directed Bora to appear before the SEM on 19 October and show cause why she should not execute a personal bond of ₹10,000 with one surety "for keeping peace for a period of inquiry".

The notice followed her detention by the Delhi Police on 16 October, when she joined the 'Lehra Do Tiranga' march in the capital. The march was part of the protests demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

Bora had challenged the notice before the Delhi High Court. She described the preventive proceedings as an attempt to suppress peaceful dissent and contended that the notice did not adequately establish a likelihood of a breach of the peace. She maintained that peaceful protest and democratic opposition should not be treated as violations of public order. The High Court dismissed the plea on Friday.

Bora linked the bond proceedings to the wider campaign against the Chief Election Commissioner. She said that the fight against Gyanesh Kumar, whatever direction it takes, must not come at the cost of labelling the right to dissent as a threat to peace.

"And this battle is not separate from our fight against the FIR or our demand for Gyanesh Kumar's resignation. In the times to come, as we continue to fight this movement, as we are fighting it now and will continue to fight it in whatever way we can, it is very important that peaceful protests taking place on the streets, democratic protests, are not declared a breach of peace," she said.

"That is why the battle we are fighting at this moment is very important," Bora said.