Delhi Police have registered a First Information Report (FIR) following a complaint from Sahil Lochab, a student injured by pellet fire during a youth protest march on July 20. The filing came after a lengthy sit-in by Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi outside the Parliament Street police station, where he protested for approximately seven hours on Friday. The incident highlights ongoing concerns regarding police conduct during demonstrations.
What happened at Parliament Street police station
I won’t leave,” Gandhi said when talking to the officers at the Parliament Street police station. “I will sit here for as long as needed. “We sought justice for a citizen of the country, and it took hours. The staff there directed them to the office of the deputy commissioner of police. But he made it clear that he would not leave without an FIR being registered, regardless of how many hours or days it took.
A busy schedule the next day, due to programmes marking the birth anniversary of Rahul’s father and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, meant Rahul asked Sahil Lochab to come to his residence only on August 21. Rahul Gandhi and Sahil Lochab, along with the latter’s mother and lawyer, met the police first around 11:30 am. The FIR was registered only after 6:30 pm, he noted later. Delhi University student Sahil Lochab had visited the police station with his lawyer on August 14 and 17, too, but the FIR was not registered, it is learnt. He approached Rahul Gandhi about this on July 19, which was when Rahul told him that he would accompany him. Around 11:30 am on Friday, Rahul Gandhi arrived at the Connaught Place police station first, with Lochab and his mother, without informing any officers beforehand.
Just imagine what happens at police stations in villages or small towns,” he said, alleging that “orders from above were putting the brakes on justice”. The DCP (New Delhi) office is within the Sansad Marg (Parliament Street) police station complex, where officials told Rahul that the Supreme Court had already appointed a committee to investigate the police action.
