NEW DELHI: Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, staged a sit-in protest at the Parliament Street Police Station on Friday. He demanded the immediate registration of a First Information Report (FIR) over the alleged use of pellet guns against protester Sahil Lochav during a July 20 demonstration at Connaught Place. Accompanied by Lochav, Gandhi stated that he would not budge from the location until the police registered an official complaint.
Addressing reporters outside the police station, Gandhi cited a medical report from AIIMS to support the allegation. He claimed that the medical findings show over 200 pellet shells inside Lochav’s body, including three in his eye, resulting in a loss of vision. He further noted that several shells remain lodged near Lochav’s heart and cannot be surgically operated on.
“Delhi Police say they did not fire pellet guns. So, there is just one question: someone must have done it… A crime has indeed happened… We are demanding that an FIR be registered,” Gandhi said. He alleged that officers told him they were acting under orders from above and could not file the case. Attacking the Union Home Ministry and Delhi Police, Gandhi said, “In this country, Amit Shah’s Home Ministry and Delhi Police personnel won’t let justice happen.”
In a post on social media platform X, the Congress leader accused Union Home Minister Amit Shah of evading justice and stated that brutality against peaceful protesters constitutes a serious crime. He added that neither the Home Minister nor the Prime Minister had offered an explanation or apology to the students, while the refusal to log an FIR trampled upon constitutional rights.
Congress cadres and several senior leaders—including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Jairam Ramesh, Salman Khurshid, Kumari Selja, and Devendra Yadav—gathered outside the station to join the protest. According to Congress sources, Lochav and his legal counsel had previously submitted a written complaint to Delhi Police on August 14, followed by inquiries via email and phone on August 17. However, no Investigating Officer (I/O) number or formal acknowledgement was issued.
On Friday, Gandhi initially visited the Mandir Marg Police Station before meeting senior officials at the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Central office at Parliament Street. After officials again failed to provide an I/O number or file a case, Gandhi initiated the sit-in demonstration.
