3 weeks ago
Ten persons injured by pellets during Delhi Parliament march: RTI
Many young people in Delhi, India, were angry because they believed big tests for jobs and school were not being run fairly.
They started protesting in June.
On July 20, thousands marched toward Parliament, where the country's leaders work.
Police tried to stop them and used sticks, tear gas, and special guns that fire small round metal balls called pellets.
These pellets can really hurt people.
Ten people went to hospitals with pellet injuries.
A politician named Saket Gokhale asked the hospitals for their records and learned the true number of hurt people.
At first, police denied using pellet guns, but later news reports said an officer had ordered it.
Two people who were hurt went to India's highest court to ask for a ban on pellet guns.
Now leaders are disagreeing about what happened.
Ten people were injured by pellet/projectile fire during a youth protest march to Parliament in Delhi on July 20, according to RTI responses from two hospitals.
Lady Hardinge Medical College treated nine patients and Safdarjung Hospital one patient with pellet/projectile injuries.
Delhi Police denied firing pellet guns a day after the march, but The Hindu reported that pellet guns were fired on the orders of a Delhi Police officer.
It was the first time pellet guns were used in Delhi against unarmed protesters.
Two injured protesters, Prashant Kumar Singh and Sheikh Irshad Mansoor, moved the Supreme Court seeking a ban on pellet guns, as opposition lawmakers demanded a statement from Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Parliament.
- Who
- Youth protesters, the Delhi Police, and TMC leader Saket Gokhale, who obtained the hospital records via an RTI request.
- What
- Ten persons were injured by pellet/projectile fire during a police crackdown on a youth protest march to Parliament; hospital records obtained through RTI confirmed the injuries.
- Where
- Delhi, India, during a march to Parliament; the protests had begun at Jantar Mantar.
- When
- The march and police action occurred on July 20; Gokhale released the hospital records on August 10, 2026.
- Why
- Protesters were demanding action over alleged mismanagement of competitive exams and the resignation of Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Opposition and critics
Government and police
Use of pellet guns
Opposition and critics
Hospital RTI records confirm 10 pellet injuries, and reports say pellet guns were fired on the orders of a Delhi Police officer; critics say authorities have not released a confirmed casualty figure.
Government and police
Delhi Police denied firing pellet guns at protesters a day after the march.
Parliamentary accountability
Opposition and critics
Opposition parties demand Union Home Minister Amit Shah make a statement in Parliament about alleged excessive force; Saket Gokhale accused Shah of using police as his 'personal mafia' and hiding from Parliament.
Government and police
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said Shah was ready to speak about the protests and police action if the Opposition does not disrupt proceedings in the House.
Key facts
- Pellet injury victims
- 10 (confirmed via hospital RTI records)
- Lady Hardinge Medical College cases
- 9
- Safjarjung Hospital cases
- 1
- Protest date
- July 20
- Protests began
- June 6 at Jantar Mantar, Delhi
- Education minister resigned
- Dharmendra Pradhan, July 25
- Supreme Court plea
- Ban on pellet guns, filed by two injured protesters
Quotes
Saket Gokhale
Leader of Trinamool Congress and RTI activist
“Shah was ready to speak about the protests against alleged mismanagement of competitive exams and the police action, if the Opposition does not disrupt proceedings in the House.”
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“What sort of a joke of a democracy is it where the police use pellet guns, lie about it, and then refuse to disclose the number of victims when confronted.”
scroll.in
Sources
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