The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it would set up a high-powered committee consisting of a retired top court judge, a former high court chief justice, an ex-CBI Director, a former DGP and others to examine allegations of police excesses during the CJP-led student protest last month.Asking for suggestions from different parties on other members to be included in the proposed high-powered committee by this evening, a Bench d by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant said an order to this effect would be released on Wednesday.The Bench said it would direct the handing over of video footage and CCTV recordings of the violence during the July 20 Parliament march in the national capital to the panel for examination even as the Delhi Police denied using excessive force during the protest.The panel would examine video footage and CCTV recordings of the violence and the police response during the march and recommend measures to the top court.The panel will also examine complaints by female protesters who were allegedly molested.Alleging that ‘history-sheeters’ infiltrated July 20 protest in which 240 cops injured, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the Bench that except for 2,873 individuals, who have grave cases involving grievous offences of murder, rape, abductions etc, the cases against others can be quashed.”FIRs against student protestors must be quashed. How to do… your Lordships can decide. Anti-social elements who infiltrated (the protest) have to be probed,” Mehta told the Bench which also included Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana.On behalf of a petitioner opposing the withdrawal of cases against protesters, advocate Rizwan Ahmed said the students should file affidavits expressing remorse before cases against them were withdrawn. Under the BNSS, there were only two categories of protests — lawful and unlawful, and since the July 20 Parliament march was unlawful, the protesters cannot escape liability, he argued.Rizwan’s arguments were opposed by senior advocates Menaka Guruswamy, Gopal Sankaranarayanan, N Hariharan and Shadan Farasat. And advocate Vrida Grover. Referring to the Delhi Police affidavit, Sankaranarayanan said they have admitted that officers in plainclothes and without name tags used force against protesters.The top court, however, stressed the impact of the criminal cases on students, noting that they have a future ahead of them and a constitutionally protected right to protest under Article 19. “It’s a question of the life and future of innocent students… they have legitimate expectations from the system,” the CJI noted.”Criminality has to be seen with the object and purpose for which students gathered there. Let’s not forget their right under Article 19. So long as you don’t violate the law and raise your voice peacefully, those cases are completely distinguishable from cases of hardened criminals,” CJI Kant said.The Delhi Police have strongly defended the use of force during the “Chalo Sansad” protest here on July 20, alleging the agitation was hijacked by “anti-social elements” and “history-sheeters”, resulting in a breakdown of law and order that left more than 240 police personnel injured. They said 92 of the people present at the site were involved in more than 10 criminal cases, of whom 47 were “history-sheeters”.An affidavit filed by Deputy Commissioner of Police Sachin Sharma of the New Delhi district in response to petitions alleging excessive use of force against protesters said Delhi Police were willing to have their actions examined by a court-appointed panel.Police resorted to force only after repeated warnings and attempts to prevent protesters from advancing towards Parliament were not heeded to, the Delhi Police submitted.”The use of force by police can be gone into by a Committee appointed by this Hon’ble Court and the Delhi police will fully cooperate with such Committee and provide all details necessary,” Sharma said.