Seven days’ notice before any arrest, and no coercive steps in the meantime: that is the protection a Delhi court has given Congress MP Bimol Akoijam in a sexual harassment FIR, while noting that the investigation is still ongoing.
New Delhi: The Delhi Police cannot take coercive steps against Congress MP and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) professor Angomcha Bimol Akoijam, and must give him seven days’ prior notice if they need to arrest him, a court at Rouse Avenue directed on Thursday while disposing of his anticipatory bail plea [Angomcha Bimol Akoijam v. State (NCT of Delhi) (case title to be verified)].
The order was passed on November 5, 2026 by Special Judge Digvinay Singh of the Rouse Avenue Courts, in the FIR registered against Akoijam under Section 75 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which deals with sexual harassment.
What weighed with the court
Special Judge Singh took note that Akoijam has clear antecedents and has been cooperating with the investigation. The court also recorded that the investigation is continuing and that the statements of the complainants are yet to be recorded.
Given that, the police were told not to take coercive steps, and to give seven days’ notice if arrest is considered necessary. If Akoijam fails to cooperate with the investigation, the Delhi Police remain free to approach the court for appropriate directions.
The complaints behind the FIR
Complaints made in May by several female students of JNU, at least 11 of them, led to the FIR. They allege sexual harassment by Akoijam, who was attached to the Centre for the Study of Social Systems in the School of Social Sciences. Akoijam has denied the allegations. The complainants are not being identified.
Earlier this week, the court had sought the police’s reply on his plea and protected him from coercive action until November 5. It decided the plea on Thursday.
The separate JNU dismissal case
JNU has separately terminated Akoijam’s services after its internal inquiry into the complaints. Earlier this week, the Delhi High Court, through Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani, stayed the termination, issued notice to the university on his challenge and listed the matter in January 2027. Akoijam has said the action against him is politically motivated. The university’s response to his challenge is awaited.
The allegations against Akoijam are untested and remain under investigation. The court’s order deals only with pre-arrest protection, it has expressed no view on the merits of the complaints, and Akoijam is entitled to the presumption of innocence.
Why the order matters
Prior notice is a middle path courts often adopt in anticipatory bail matters when an investigation is at an early stage. It stops short of full anticipatory bail, but the accused cannot be arrested without warning and has time to seek legal remedies, while the police stay free to investigate and to return to court if he does not cooperate. The factors the court relied on here, clean antecedents and cooperation so far, are the standard ones for such relief.
Both sides of the case are sensitive. A number of students have complained against a teacher in a position of authority, and the accused is a sitting Member of Parliament who says he is being targeted. The order keeps the investigation on track, with the complainants’ statements still to be recorded, while protecting the accused’s liberty in the meantime. How the probe proceeds, and the separate challenge to his dismissal, will decide the next steps.
Case Title: Angomcha Bimol Akoijam v. State (NCT of Delhi) (case title to be verified)
Court: Special Judge Digvinay Singh, Rouse Avenue Courts, New Delhi
Date of Order: November 5, 2026
Offence: Section 75, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita
