Amnesty’s Evidence Lab finds use of force by Delhi Police ‘unprofessional’ 

In a statement issued on Monday, 24 August, Amnesty India declared that videos and photographic evidence of police action at Jantar Mantar and in Siwan, Bihar, between 20 and 24 July, verified by Amnesty International’s Evidence Lab, confirmed breaches of policing guidelines and international law.

Delhi Police had publicly denied disproportionate use of force on protesters at Jantar Mantar in July and claimed before the Supreme Court that its handling of the protest was ‘professional’. Delhi Police had also responded to reports of pellet injuries with a 'Fake News Alert' on X, calling the reports "completely false and misleading" and warning of "appropriate legal action" against anyone "spreading rumours". However, evidence gathered by Amnesty International directly contradicts this account.

'Witness testimony and video and photographic evidence verified by Amnesty International’s Evidence Lab confirm that police used weapons including pellet-firing shotguns, tear gas launchers, grenades, batons and electric shock devices against protesters between 20 July and 24 July in Delhi and Siwan town in Bihar state. The weapons were deployed in a manner that breached international law and standards and domestic policing guidelines. Amnesty International also verified two instances of a police officer unlawfully using lethal force against a crowd,' asserted Amnesty India in a statement on Monday, 24 August.

'Instead of facilitating the right to protest, Indian authorities suppressed it first with a communication blackout, barricades and transport disruption. They then attempted to crush it with unnecessary or excessive use of force against peaceful protesters, including children. This heavy-handed response was state-sanctioned violence masked as crowd control. The continued impunity after a month is a testament to that," said Aakar Patel, chair of the board, Amnesty International India, referring to the fact that even after a month, no action has apparently been taken against any policeman.

'Despite the body of evidence, Indian authorities have made no public commitment to investigate or prosecute any officer involved. We call on Indian authorities to order a prompt, impartial and effective investigation into the use of firearms, birdshot ammunition, tear gas, lathis and electric shock weapons against protesters in Delhi and Siwan, and to publish its findings,' said Patel in the statement. 'The deployment and use of birdshot ammunition and direct-contact electric shock devices must also end immediately.'

Amnesty International’s Evidence Lab verified 17 videos filmed on 20 July in central Delhi across the area spanning Jantar Mantar, Sansad Marg and Connaught Place, and two videos filmed in Siwan town of Bihar state on 24 July. In videos filmed in Delhi, personnel from Delhi Police, the Rapid Action Force (RAF) and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) were identified. Amnesty International’s Evidence Lab verified videos showing an RAF officer firing a shotgun into the crowd at the intersection of Connaught Place and Sansad Marg, the statement added.

Two other ‘verified videos’ show two protesters near the same intersection with wounds consistent with those caused by birdshot, a hunting round that fires a large number of small metal pellets. The weapons used are colloquially known as 'pellet-firing shotguns' in India. CCTV footage verified by Amnesty International also shows two RAF officers carrying shotguns among the crowd a few blocks away.

Birdshot ammunition has not been developed for law enforcement purposes. Due to the spread of the metal pellets, it is inherently inaccurate and presents a high risk of serious injuries to the targeted person and even bystanders. Its use has been linked to deaths and multiple cases of blinding in Egypt, Iran and Jammu & Kashmir.

The ‘Standard Operating Procedures to deal with Public Agitations with Non-Lethal Measures’, prepared by India’s Bureau for Police Research and Development, recommend that security forces warn protesters before using less-lethal or lethal force.

According to the victim interviewed by Amnesty International, no prior warning was given before the pellet-firing shotgun was used. International standards on the use of force also require that law enforcement officials use non-violent means before resorting to the use of force. This includes issuing a clear warning whenever possible and giving sufficient time for people to react.

Eyewitnesses told Amnesty International that tear gas grenades were launched directly at protesters instead of at an angled trajectory above the heads of protesters, at odds with UN guidelines on the use of less-lethal weapons in law enforcement. The use of tear gas should be limited to situations of widespread and serious violence. There is no evidence available that suggests such a level of violence by protesters. While there were isolated incidents of protesters throwing stones, this would not reach that threshold.

While men in plain clothes, including some wearing black helmets marked 'Delhi Police' on the back, are seen beating protesters with lathis, uniformed officers who escorted them towards the crowd stand beside them and make no attempt to intervene. The absence of visible identification, such as name tags or badge numbers, on these individuals is itself a breach of the accountability principle, which requires that law enforcement officials be identifiable in any encounter involving the use of force.

Amnesty International also verified two videos filmed on 24 July in Siwan, Bihar, where a state police officer is seen firing an AK-type assault rifle at protesters. Firearms of this kind are designed to kill and, in the context of assemblies, may lawfully be used only to meet an imminent threat of death or serious injury to a specific individual, and only as an absolute last resort. Amnesty International has found no evidence that any such threat existed.