Delhi Police Indicates Withdrawal of FIRs as 36-Day Protest Ends

Following the decision by the organisers of the Jantar Mantar protest to call off their 36-day agitation, Delhi Police officials have indicated that FIRs registered in connection with the protest are likely to be withdrawn. Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Sachin Sharma stated that while official communication is pending, the FIRs are expected to be withdrawn.

However, Sharma refused to comment on allegations of excessive force during the July 20 protest march, including the use of plainclothes officers without badges and harassment of women. Another police officer confirmed that at least 2,500 individuals have been identified through facial recognition technology for various offences related to the protest. A total of 15 FIRs were registered, including charges of attempt to murder, rioting, and voluntarily causing hurt, while 22 FIRs were filed for pickpocketing incidents.

The Deputy Commissioner also reported that three police personnel, including a Special Commissioner, were injured during stone-pelting allegedly by protesters celebrating the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan at Jantar Mantar. Police subsequently used lathi charge and tear gas to disperse the crowd.

In the South East district alone, around 400 people were detained over three days for unlawful assembly under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, with approximately 150 detentions on the final day. Arjun Kumar, a student, said he and his friends were detained en route to the protest near Hazrat Nizamuddin police station but were later released.

Additionally, police flagged the spread of disinformation via social media, particularly AI-generated deepfake videos featuring individuals like Sonam Wangchuk and Army Lieutenant-General Rajeev Puri. Rohit Rajbir Singh, DCP Central, said these videos contain partial or deformed content aimed at misleading the public.