30,000 Protesters, 5,000 Cops: Delhi Police Defends Force Before Supreme Court In Protest Case

Delhi Police has denied allegations of excessive force during a major protest, telling the Supreme Court that around 5,000 personnel were deployed to manage more than 30,000 protesters across nearly three kilometres. The police says barricades were breached and protesters attempted to move towards Parliament without permission. More than 240 police and uniformed personnel and around 200 protesters/public persons were reportedly injured. The affidavit also defends plainclothes spotters, lathi use and facial-recognition technology, while leaving the question of excessive force to the Court’s proposed fact-finding mechanism.