Aam Aadmi Party Delhi president Saurabh Bharadwaj has submitted written complaints to the Delhi Police Commissioner, the Lieutenant-Governor and the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, seeking an FIR against police personnel over what he described as violent assaults during protests in the Capital.
Mr. Bharadwaj alleged that Delhi Police personnel physically assaulted him while detaining him during a protest and said he had submitted three videos in support of his complaint. He warned that he would approach the court if an FIR was not registered.
The complaint places the question of police conduct during protests before multiple levels of Delhi’s administrative and security structure. The Delhi Police Commissioner is responsible for the force’s immediate administrative response, while the Lieutenant-Governor and the Union Home Ministry have oversight roles in the governance of policing in the national Capital.
Mr. Bharadwaj alleged that the incidents reflected a systematic pattern of violence against political leaders and public representatives. He also referred to CPI(M) MP John Brittas, who he said faced similar violence while protesting what opposition parties have described as “vote-theft” in Delhi over the past week.
In his written submissions, Mr. Bharadwaj argued that the alleged incidents could not be treated as routine crowd-control measures. He cited the locations, timelines and circumstances of the incidents and alleged a “coordinated criminal conspiracy to cause me grievous bodily harm or death under the guise of official duty”.
He further alleged that the actions amounted to a deliberate attempt to inflict fatal or serious injuries on elected representatives under the cover of official duty. Because, according to his complaint, local police and security personnel were themselves involved in the alleged assaults, he said an internal inquiry would not be sufficient to ensure justice.
The allegations remain claims made in the complaints and were not independently established in the report. The account did not include a response from the Delhi Police, the Lieutenant-Governor’s office or the Union Ministry of Home Affairs on the demand for an FIR or on the videos submitted by Mr. Bharadwaj.
The immediate issue before the authorities is whether the complaints will result in the registration of an FIR and what investigative mechanism will examine the alleged conduct. Mr. Bharadwaj said he would seek judicial intervention if no FIR was registered.
