New Delhi: The Delhi Police on Friday registered an FIR in connection with the alleged pellet-gun injuries suffered by 19-year-old student protester Sahil Lochab during a protest at Jantar Mantar on July 20. The FIR was registered after Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi staged a prolonged sit-in at Parliament Street Police Station, demanding action on the student’s complaint.
According to police sources, the case has been registered against unknown persons on the basis of Lochab’s complaint. Police have also collected his medical report and other relevant documents as part of the investigation. The FIR invokes Sections 118(1) and 125 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), relating to causing hurt or grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means and acts endangering life or personal safety.
VIDEO | Delhi: Lok Sabha LoP and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) holds a sit-in protest at Sansad Marg Police Station, demanding the registration of an FIR over pellet injuries sustained during the July 20 protest.
(Full video available on PTI Videos -… pic.twitter.com/gZTshqPG1l
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 21, 2026
Lochab has alleged that he was hit by pellets during the July 20 protest and suffered serious injuries, including damage to his eye. Reports citing his medical records said pellets were found lodged in different parts of his body. A Safdarjung Hospital case sheet had earlier documented pellet-related wounds in another protester from the same demonstration, while Delhi Police had denied using pellet guns against protesters.
The issue gained renewed political attention on Friday when Rahul Gandhi accompanied Lochab and his mother to the Parliament Street Police Station. After the complaint was not immediately converted into an FIR, Gandhi sat on a dharna, saying he would remain there until the case was registered. Congress leaders, including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Jairam Ramesh, also joined the protest.
Delhi Police has filed an FIR against unknown persons following a complaint by the pellet gun victim. The FIR was registered after Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi staged a sit-in demanding action. DCP, New Delhi handed over the FIR: Delhi Police pic.twitter.com/RMmmHSCA5e
— IANS (@ians_india) August 21, 2026
The Delhi Police had earlier cited a Supreme Court-directed High-Powered Expert Committee (HPEC) examining allegations of excessive and disproportionate use of force during the student protests. Police had also maintained that they had not used pellet guns against protesters.
The controversy stems from the July 20 protest march organised by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP). A subsequent General Diary entry at Parliament Street Police Station, reported by The Tribune, stated that the Rapid Action Force used ballistic cartridges containing plastic pellets during crowd-control operations on the instructions of a senior Delhi Police officer.
With the FIR now registered, the investigation will have to establish who fired the pellets, under whose authority, and under what circumstances, besides determining whether the injuries suffered by Lochab can be directly linked to the alleged firing.
The registration of the FIR marks the first formal criminal investigation specifically arising from Lochab’s complaint and is likely to intensify scrutiny of the police response to the July 20 protest.
