Amnesty International says police in India used excessive force during youth-led protests
Indian police used excessive force, including electric shock devices and pellet guns, against youth-led protests that forced the education minister to resign last month, Amnesty International said on Monday. A report from the rights group clashes with the police account that force was used only after protesters turned violent, and comes after India’s Supreme Court set up a panel on Thursday to…
Amnesty International accused Indian police of using excessive force, comprising electric shock devices and pellet guns, during youth-led protests that led to the resignation of the education minister, according to a report released on Monday. The organization's claims contradict the police's statement that force was only employed after protesters turned violent, following a Supreme Court panel's establishment on Thursday to investigate the violence on both sides.
Demonstrations in the Indian capital, New Delhi, erupted on July 20 due to the leak of the national medical entrance test. Thousands of protesters sought to march towards parliament, but the protests escalated into violence. Amnesty International's investigation, based on witness testimonies and verified visual evidence, confirmed the use of "pellet-firing shotguns, tear gas launchers, grenades, batons, and electric shock devices" against protesters in Delhi and the eastern state of Bihar.
Two incidents of police officers using lethal force unlawfully against a crowd in Bihar's Siwan district were also verified. No fatalities were reported. Amnesty International stated that the deployment of these weapons breached international law, domestic policing guidelines, and standards. Though there were "isolated incidents of protesters throwing stones," the organization described the police's heavy-handed response as "state-sanctioned violence masquerading as crowd control."
The Delhi Police claimed in a recent Supreme Court hearing that they only used force after protesters "resorted to violence," alleging that anti-social elements disguised as aggrieved students caused "grievous injuries" to security forces. Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi staged a sit-in outside a Delhi police station on Friday with a 19-year-old protester who alleged injuries from pellet usage during the July 20 demonstration.
Gandhi demanded a police investigation into the shooting, and officers subsequently registered a case on the complaint. The protests, led by the online Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), evolved from anger over exam irregularities into a broader movement concerning unemployment, opportunities for young people, and critics' concerns over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's increasingly authoritarian rule.
The protests represented the most significant challenge that Modi has faced since winning a third term in 2024.
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