Delhi Police have registered an FIR against unidentified persons over the alleged pellet-gun injuries suffered by a 19-year-old student during a protest in the capital last month, following a sit-in by opposition leader Rahul Gandhi at a police station.
Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, joined student protester Sahil Lochab and his mother outside the Parliament Street police station on Friday, demanding that police register a first information report (FIR).
Police said they registered the case after receiving Lochab’s complaint and examining his medical records and other documents.
“This is the first step towards justice,” Rahul Gandhi told reporters after the FIR was filed. He said nearly a month had passed since the alleged shooting and claimed that pellets remained lodged in Lochab’s body, including three in his eye.
Rahul Gandhi said he and Lochab had arrived at the police station at about 11:30 a.m. and that the FIR was registered roughly seven hours later.
The Congress leader has accused police of using pellet guns against students who were protesting peacefully at Jantar Mantar on July 20. He said Lochab’s eyesight in one eye was at risk as a result of the injuries.
Police have denied using pellet guns against the student protesters.
Lochab told reporters that he was injured on July 20 and was initially treated at Lady Hardinge Medical College before being referred to AIIMS, where he underwent surgery. He said his eyesight had not fully recovered.
He said he submitted a seven-page complaint through his lawyer on Aug. 14 but the case was not registered until Friday.
Lochab’s lawyer alleged that police officials at the Connaught Place and Parliament Street stations had directed them to approach each other over jurisdiction. The lawyer also alleged that police had refused to accept the complaint after keeping them waiting.
Delhi Police had earlier cited the Supreme Court’s formation of a High-Powered Expert Committee to examine allegations of excessive use of force during the student protests as a reason for not registering the FIR.
Gandhi has demanded accountability from the government over the alleged use of force and has written to Home Minister Amit Shah seeking an explanation over the use of pellet guns against protesters.
The Rapid Action Force, the riot-control unit of the Central Reserve Police Force, was deployed at Jantar Mantar during the protests. Pellet guns are part of the equipment used by riot-control forces, although the CRPF has not publicly confirmed their use during the Delhi demonstrations.
The FIR comes after Gandhi spent several hours protesting outside the police station, saying he would remain there until the complaint was registered.
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