Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra left the Parliament Street Police Station on Thursday after Delhi Police filed an FIR based on a complaint by student Sahil Lochav, who sustained pellet gun injuries during a student protest at Jantar Mantar last month.
The FIR has been filed under Sections 118 and 125 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Section 118 pertains to intentionally inflicting injury or serious injury through dangerous weapons or methods, while Section 125 concerns actions that put another person’s life or personal safety at risk.
The FIR was filed after Rahul Gandhi held a sit-in outside the police station, calling for action regarding Lochav's injuries. He was joined at the protest site by Congress leaders, including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president Devender Yadav.
Addressing reporters after the FIR was filed, Gandhi described it as "the first step toward justice" and drew attention to the severity of Lochav's injuries.
This marks the initial move toward securing justice, with the case now formally registered. It has been a month since he was struck by the bullet. Pellets remain embedded in his body—three are lodged in his eye, leaving him unable to see from it—and another three or four are positioned close to his heart, Gandhi said.
Gandhi said Congress leaders had arrived at the police station around 11 am or 11.30 am and had remained there until nearly 6.45 pm before the FIR was registered.
"A grave injustice has been done to this young man," he said, adding that the delay raised concerns about access to justice even at a police station in central Delhi.
Gandhi alleged that the final approval for registering the FIR had to come from Union Home Minister Amit Shah and the Home Secretary.
"He said this showed who was delaying the filing of the FIR, alleging that police officers were willing to register the case but that "justice was being obstructed from higher levels." Earlier, Gandhi had challenged the Delhi Police's assertion that its personnel did not use pellet guns during the protest and presented pellets he claimed were taken from Lochav's body. The Congress leader further maintained that the party had done nothing wrong by demanding justice for Lochav and his family, and raised concerns about what occurs in police stations in smaller towns and villages if it takes several hours to file an FIR in the national capital.
