Amit Shah must explain July 20 police action in Parliament: Congress

The Congress demanded a Parliament discussion on the alleged use of metal pellets against student protesters during the July 20 demonstrations and asked Home Minister Amit Shah to explain the police action, citing a medico-legal report and seeking accountability

New Delhi: The Congress on Thursday demanded that there should be a discussion in Parliament over the alleged use of pellets on protesting students on July 20 by the CRPF and that Home Minister Amit Shah must provide an accounting of his actions on that day.

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh shared the screenshot of a media report which claimed that the medico-legal case (MLC) report of one of the petitioners in the Supreme Court alleging the use of pellet guns during the protest said multiple “metallic foreign” bodies were retrieved from his body during surgery.

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“There is now evidence from the medico-legal case report that it was not just plastic pellets but the significantly more dangerous metal pellets that were used against students on July 20th by the Home Ministry-controlled CRPF,” Ramesh said on X. “There must be a discussion in Parliament on this subject. Amit Shah must provide Parliament with an accounting of his actions on July 20th,” the Congress leader said.

Earlier, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi said Shah’s absence from Parliament “reeks of guilt”. He also reiterated his demand for a Supreme Court-monitored probe into the alleged police excesses against students.

Gandhi also shared on X a video clip of police lathi-charging students. “Students deserve justice. An independent SC-monitored high powered committee must be constituted to probe brutalities against our students,” he wrote, referring to the crackdown on agitators by security forces during the July 20 Cockroach Janta Party-led protest march to Parliament and on student demonstrators in other parts of the country.

In another post, Gandhi asked why Shah is “so scared” of coming to Parliament and explaining the brutal violence against students. “It reeks of guilt,” he added. On July 24, Gandhi presented before the media a student protester who was allegedly shot with a pellet gun by security personnel during the July 20 protests.

“You are saying that protesters have been hit by pellet guns. I want to explain when were pellet guns fired. My brother was struck by a pellet gun when he was peacefully protesting with a tricolour in hand,” Gandhi said with the injured protester, who identified himself as Sahil, by his side.

Lifting the youngster’s T-shirt to show his injuries to the media, Gandhi said Sahil’s eye was damaged and he is unable to see from that eye.

Later, officials had said the Rapid Action Force (RAF) fired multiple non-lethal munitions, including two rounds of plastic pellets, under permission from a Delhi Police officer while controlling a mob near Jantar Mantar during the July 20 protest.

On the directions of the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) rank officer of Delhi Police, according to the officials quoting Parliament Street police station record, RAF fired 55 non-electrical shells, 15 electrical shells, five tear smoke grenades, two rounds from the anti-riot guns and two rounds of plastic pellets on July 20. It was not known if RAF units fired more pellets at other protest sites. Delhi Police has said on record that the claims of use of pellets against protesters were completely “false and misleading”.