New Delhi: Amnesty International on Monday recently published a digital investigation documenting police response to the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP)-led protests. The report comes a month after the CJP-led Sansad Chalo march in Delhi and the larger Gen-Z movement, which erupted throughout the country and eventually led to the resignation of the Union education minister, Dharmendra Pradhan. In its publication of the investigation, on August 24, Amnesty International said Indian police deployed unlawful and deadly force against peaceful protesters.Amnesty International’s Evidence Lab has verified video and photographic evidence and confirmed that the police used weapons such as pellet guns, tear gas, grenades, batons and electric shock devices against protesters in Delhi and Siwan in Bihar. Amnesty said the weapons were deployed in ways that breached international law and policing guidelines. Aakar Patel, Chair of the Board at Amnesty International India, has accused Indian authorities of attempting to crush the protests with unnecessary or excessive use of force against peaceful protesters.“Instead of facilitating the right to protest, Indian authorities suppressed it first with a communication blackout, barricades and transport disruption. They then attempted to crush it with unnecessary or excessive use of force against peaceful protesters, including children. This heavy-handed response was state-sanctioned violence masked as crowd control. The continued impunity after a month is a testament to that,” he said.PelletsThe Evidence Lab verified 17 videos filmed on July 20 in central Delhi across the area spanning Jantar Mantar, Sansad Marg and Connaught Place, and two videos filmed in Siwan, Bihar, on July 24. In the videos from Delhi, personnel from Delhi Police, the Rapid Action Force (RAF), and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) were identified. Amnesty verified an RAF officer firing a shotgun in the crowd. Two other videos verified by the organisation show protestors with wounds consistent with those caused by small metal pellets.A protester who sustained pellet injuries told Amnesty International, on condition of anonymity, that an altercation had taken place between protesters and police near Connaught Place, but that most of the demonstration remained peaceful.Also read: After Rahul Gandhi’s Day-Long Dharna, Pellet Gun Victim’s FIR RegisteredThe protester alleged that RAF personnel initially used tear gas before using pellet-firing shotguns without warning. According to the protester, they were struck in the back while attempting to flee and sustained approximately 25 to 30 pellet wounds. The protester said doctors at a hospital subsequently confirmed that the injuries were caused by pellets.The protester also alleged that no prior warning was given before the pellets were fired. Amnesty said this was contrary to the Standard Operating Procedures to Deal with Public Agitations with Non-Lethal Measures prepared by India’s Bureau of Police Research and Development.The Wire’s own investigation has also previously confirmed the use of pellet-firing guns by the RAF on protesters in Delhi.Tear gas and batonsAmnesty said the use of tear gas during the protests also raised concerns about the proportionality and safety of police tactics.The investigation found that tear-gas grenades were, in some instances, fired directly at protesters rather than launched at an angle above their heads, contrary to the UN guidance on their use. Amnesty said tear gas should only be deployed in situations involving widespread and serious violence, and found no evidence that such a level of violence was present during the protests. The organisation also noted that certain tear-gas grenades can release significant explosive energy and cause serious injuries, particularly when used in densely populated areas or fired directly at people.It must be noted that especially on July 20, during the Sansad Chalo march, the police deployed tear gas rampantly at the crowd that included not just protesters but also bystanders and commuters passing through the busy central Delhi area.Amnesty also verified eight videos showing Delhi Police and Rapid Action Force personnel striking protesters with batons. The footage included officers hitting people who appeared to pose no immediate threat, including a young boy. In some videos, men in plain clothes were seen beating protesters with lathis while uniformed officers stood nearby without intervening. Amnesty said the footage raised serious concerns about whether the use of batons was necessary and proportionate to the threat posed by protesters.FirearmsAmnesty International also documented the use of lethal firearms on July 24 in Siwan, Bihar. “A state police officer is firing an AK-type assault rifle against protesters. Firearms of this kind are designed to kill and, in the context of assemblies, may lawfully be used only to meet an imminent threat of death or serious injury to a specific individual, and only as an absolute last resort,” it stated. In its investigation, Amnesty found no evidence of “life endangering” threat.The findings have renewed questions over the use of force against protesters and the lack of accountability for police actions. Amnesty International has called for a prompt, impartial, and effective investigation into the use of firearms, birdshot ammunition, tear gas, lathis, and electric shock weapons during the protests, while urging authorities to end the use of birdshot and direct-contact electric shock devices. With no Delhi police officer held accountable a month after the crackdown, the response to the protests continues to raise concerns over the protection of the right to peaceful assembly and the mechanisms available to hold law enforcement accountable for excessive use of force.