During recent student protests at Jantar Mantar, Delhi police defended their deployment of facial recognition technology and biometric surveillance. Authorities stated that these measures were aimed at scanning for known criminals amidst the demonstrations.
The Delhi Police said more than 240 personnel were injured during the Cockroach Janta Party’s ‘Chalo Sansad’ march on July 20.
The affidavit, filed in response to the petitions seeking a court-monitored investigation into an alleged police crackdown, said that an application by the CJP sought permission to hold a peaceful demonstration with 500-600 participants, but the permission for the march to parliament was denied.
In an affidavit defending their action during the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) “Sansad Chalo” protest march on July 20, the police also denied using “excessive force”. Despite loudspeaker warnings, police said the protesters breached barricades and damaged government and public property across several locations, including Rail Bhawan, Parliament Street, Connaught Place, Janpath, Tolstoy Marg, and Gole Market. On the use of facial recognition technology, which is also under challenge in a separate petition before the Supreme Court, the police said the system is not designed to automatically create or maintain profiles of protesters who have no criminal background.
