Rights group says no Delhi police officer has been held accountable one month after CJP-led demonstrations

NEW DELHI — Indian police used unlawful and, in some cases, potentially lethal force against protesters during demonstrations led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) in Delhi and Bihar last month, Amnesty International said Monday, citing witness testimony and video and photographic evidence verified by its Evidence Lab.

The rights organization said it had verified 17 videos filmed in central Delhi on July 20 and two videos recorded in Siwan, Bihar, on July 24. The footage showed personnel from the Delhi Police, Rapid Action Force (RAF) and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) using pellet-firing shotguns, tear gas, batons and electric shock devices against protesters, according to Amnesty.

Amnesty said it also verified two videos from Siwan showing a state police officer firing an AK-type assault rifle toward protesters. It said firearms of this type may only be used in an assembly against an imminent threat of death or serious injury and as an absolute last resort, and that it found no evidence of such a threat in the footage it examined.

The organization said two videos showed an RAF officer firing a shotgun into a crowd near Connaught Place and Sansad Marg. Two other verified videos showed protesters with injuries consistent with birdshot wounds, while an anonymous protester told Amnesty he suffered about 25 to 30 pellet wounds.

Amnesty said birdshot is inherently inaccurate and carries a high risk of serious injury to protesters and bystanders, and argued that it has no legitimate role in crowd control.

The organization also documented tear-gas grenades being fired directly toward protesters, rather than launched at an angled trajectory, and verified eight videos showing police and RAF personnel striking demonstrators with long flexible batons, or lathis. One video showed a young boy being beaten, while another showed a man being repeatedly struck after falling to the ground.

Amnesty further said it verified footage of an RAF officer using an electric shock baton against a protester. It called for the immediate withdrawal of direct-contact electric shock devices and an end to the use of birdshot ammunition for policing assemblies.

- Delhi police rejects allegations

Delhi Police has rejected allegations that it used disproportionate force. According to Amnesty, police publicly described reports of pellet injuries as “completely false and misleading” and later told India’s Supreme Court that its handling of the protest had been “professional.” Amnesty said the evidence it gathered contradicts that account.

The rights group said that, despite the evidence, Indian authorities had made no public commitment to investigate or prosecute officers involved in the alleged use of firearms, birdshot, tear gas, batons or electric shock weapons.

Aakar Patel, chair of the Board of Amnesty International India, called for a prompt, impartial and effective investigation and for its findings to be made public. He also accused authorities of suppressing the demonstrations through communications restrictions, barricades and disruption of public transport before using force against protesters.

- Protests and restrictions

The demonstrations were organized as the CJP-led “Chalo Sansad” march, with protesters demanding accountability over alleged problems in India’s education system. Amnesty said authorities denied permission for the march, imposed an internet shutdown around protest areas, restricted gatherings of more than five people, closed several Delhi Metro stations and erected barricades in central Delhi.

The rights group argued that peaceful assemblies should not require prior authorization under international human rights law and that restrictions must meet standards of legality, necessity and proportionality.

According to Delhi Police, more than 400 people, including police personnel and protesters, were injured during the July 20 events. Amnesty also said at least three people were injured in Siwan, including a bystander who suffered a bullet wound to the neck.

Amnesty had previously criticized the authorities' response during the protests, saying police had used unnecessary and excessive force and calling for independent investigations into allegations involving batons, tear gas and other force.

The latest investigation comes amid broader concerns raised by Amnesty over the use of extraordinary police powers during protests in India, including administrative detention under the National Security Act. The organization has urged Indian authorities to ensure that policing demonstrations respects freedom of expression and peaceful assembly and that allegations of unlawful force are independently investigated.