Amnesty International has accused Indian police of using excessive force, including pellet guns, tear gas, batons and electric shock devices, against youth-led protests that contributed to the resignation of India’s education minister.
According to Amnesty, witness accounts and verified visual evidence showed that such weapons were used against protesters in New Delhi and Bihar during demonstrations triggered by the leak of a national medical entrance examination.
The rights group said it also verified two cases in Bihar’s Siwan district where police officers allegedly used lethal force against crowds, although no one was killed.
Amnesty said some protesters threw stones, but argued that the police response went beyond what was necessary for crowd control and breached international law, domestic guidelines and policing standards.
Delhi Police, however, told India’s Supreme Court that officers used force only after protesters became violent, claiming that some people posing as students had seriously injured security personnel.
The allegations come as India’s Supreme Court has established a panel to investigate violence by both protesters and police.
Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi also joined a protest outside a Delhi police station with a 19-year-old demonstrator who said he had been injured by pellets. Police later registered a case based on his complaint.
The protests initially focused on alleged irregularities surrounding the medical entrance examination but later expanded into broader concerns over unemployment, opportunities for young people and the government’s policies.
