'Orwellian dystopia': Allahabad HC reprimands Noida DM over DU student's NSA detention during Noida workers protest
Here's the latest protest news from across India:
Allahabad High Court came down heavily on Gautam Buddha Nagar District Magistrate Medha Roopam last week while quashing the detention of a Delhi University student and called her conduct “despotic”.
Adding to this, Akriti Chaudhary was detained under the stringent National Security Act (NSA) and the order of detention was passed by Noida DM Medha Roopam. (X/@MedhaRoopam) On Wednesday last week, the Allahabad high court quashed the detention order against a 25-year-old Delhi University graduate Akriti Chaudhary who has been in judicial custody for around five months in connection with the Noida workers’ protest of April 2026, saying her detention was based on a “concocted story”.
Meanwhile, Chaudhary was detained under the stringent National Security Act (NSA) and the order of detention was passed by Roopam.
Notably, While quashing the move, the bench of justice Atul Sreedharan and justice Achal Sachdev made a reference to English writer George Orwell, who is well-known for his dystopian novel ‘1984’ and his allegorical novella ‘Animal Farm’.
As per the latest buzz, The court shared that “it shan't be long before the errant in the bureaucracy reduce the State of Uttar Pradesh to an Orwellian Dystopia”, reported Live Law.
In further updates, It also shared that when bureaucrats and cops go against their oath, they may be viewed as an “oppressive vestige of the British Empire”.
On top of that, The bench also ordered immediate rollout of Chaudhary and awarded her a compensation of ₹ 5 lakh and directed that it must be recovered from the salaries of the district magistrate to every officer responsible “right down to the SHO”.
The court observed that the police report only contained allegations against Chaudhary and it was on the district magistrate to examine the record 'threadbare' and see if the case warranted stringent action such as the NSA.
Source: Hindustan Times