Politics · India Bureau
FIR registered after Congress leader Gandhi's six-hour police station protest
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi staged a prolonged dharna at a Delhi police station on Friday demanding registration of a first information report into pellet gun injuries sustained by a 19-year-old youth during a July 20 protest. The FIR was filed late in the evening after Gandhi's intervention.
LSN India ·
Gandhi accompanied Sahil Lochab, 19, and his mother to the Mandir Marg police station after the teenager claimed police were refusing to register his complaint despite suffering pellet wounds, including damage to his eye. When the station authorities initially refused to file the FIR, Gandhi initiated a sit-in protest at the Parliament Street police station, which lasted six hours.
The Congress leader's intervention drew immediate attention to the case, and Delhi police ultimately registered the complaint late Friday evening. Gandhi said the FIR registration represented "the first step towards justice" and concluded his dharna following the police action.
The incident drew sharp criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party, which accused Gandhi of engaging in "politics of anarchy" to maintain media relevance. The BJP also claimed the Congress party was attempting to divert public attention from what it termed the party's "wrong stand" on Vande Mataram. The clash reflects broader political tensions between the two parties over law and order issues in the capital.