Student protests: Delhi Police affidavit in Supreme Court is rich with numbers, but quiet on fixing accountability

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The police said that, at one point on July 20, there were over 30,000 protestors faced by only 5,000 uniformed police officers. File. | Photo Credit: The Hindu

The 42-page Delhi Police affidavit filed in the Supreme Court near midnight on August 17, 2026, is rich in statistics, detailing the number of barricades used to regulate the NEET-UG protestors’ movement to the strength of women police officers deployed.

But the affidavit is quiet about what the police hierarchy has done so far to inquire into and fix accountability for officers who allegedly misbehaved with women students and protestors.

The Supreme Court has assured the petitioners’ counsel, senior advocates Gopal Sankaranarayanan and Shadan Farasat, that it would have the proposed high-powered committee look into allegations of plainclothes police personnel sexually molesting women protestors. Legal action would follow based on the committee’s report, Chief Justice Surya Kant, heading the Bench, said on Tuesday (August 18, 2026).

The affidavit said over 3,600 barricades were used to protect vulnerable locations and highly sensitive areas. A total of over 4,600 women police personnel were deployed during the entire protest period. A facial recognition system spotted 2,873 faces which matched those in police databases.

The affidavit even details the number of motor vehicles stolen between July 20 and July 26, 2026, as seven.

Other thefts numbered 66, and 123 lost reports were lodged, the Delhi Police said, “showcasing that the protest was infiltrated by miscreants, criminals and anti-social elements”.

SC to examine ‘proportionality’ of the use of facial recognition at NEET protests

However, the Delhi Police affidavit is not forthcoming on the “use of force by the police officials” on protestors. It said the court may appoint a high-powered committee to examine all issues related to this aspect.

“The deponent [police] is advised not to deal with the allegations against police officials and reiterate that the use of force was made in a graded manner,” the affidavit maintained.

It said over 240 police personnel, including women officers, were injured in the violence on July 20. Around 218 protestors were injured and received treatment.

The background to the protests and consequent police action on July 20 was of “considerable significance”, the police said. The protests at Jantar Mantar were “potentially sui generis” or one of a kind.

The series of events began on June 6, 2026, when some individuals began an agitation. Saurav Das, a member of the Cockroach Janta Party, sought permission from the Delhi Police on June 17 to organise a peaceful demonstration on June 20 with an expected gathering of 500-600 people. Permission was granted as a “one-time exception”. However, the protestors did not vacate the area after the scheduled time on June 20. Rather, a large number of students, political workers and leaders, activists and others came and addressed the gathering to continue and expand the agitation.