Police boss Kanja faces sentencing after defying court order
IG held personally liable after officers barricaded Nairobi CBD without public notice during Gen Z protest anniversary rekindling scrutiny of police compliance with court orders, particularly when managing demonstrations and public gatherings. It also underscores the constitutional requirement that the National Police Service operate within the rule of law and respect fundamental rights.
Inspector General (IG) of the National Police Service (NPS) Douglas Kanja now faces sentencing for contempt of court after the High Court found him personally responsible for police officers’ failure to comply with an order governing the use of roadblocks and barricades during the June 25, 2026 Gen Z protest anniversary.
The ruling has rekindled scrutiny of police compliance with court orders, particularly when managing demonstrations and public gatherings. It also underscores the constitutional requirement that the National Police Service operate within the rule of law and respect fundamental rights.
High Court judge Justice Patricia Nyaundi directed Kanja to appear before the High Court on Tuesday next week, September 22, 2026, to make mitigation submissions before the court determines the sentence. The contempt finding places the head of the National Police Service at the centre of a case over compliance with judicial orders.
The case arose from police barricades erected at several roads leading into Nairobi’s Central Business District on June 25, restricting access to the city centre during commemorations of the 2024 Finance Bill protests.
The High Court had previously issued a conservatory order requiring police to give the public prior notice before mounting roadblocks or barricades during such demonstrations. Justice Lawrence Mugambi issued the order on July 9, 2025.
Justice Nyaundi found that the order was not complied with and held Kanja personally responsible for failing to demonstrate what steps he had taken to ensure officers under his command obeyed it.
The police had disputed the contempt allegations.
Nairobi Regional Police Commander Issa Mohammed Mohamud argued that the order did not impose an absolute ban on roadblocks, checkpoints or traffic diversions and that the measures deployed on June 25 were responses to security concerns rather than a centrally coordinated operation.
The court rejected that position, stressing that internal police procedures could not override a valid court order.
Justice Nyaundi also found that sudden barriers without prior notice interfered with the public’s ability to exercise freedom of movement.
The contempt proceedings were initiated by Katiba Institute, which accused police of violating the court’s directions by barricading multiple routes into Nairobi without the required public advisory.
