Amnesty International has accused Indian police of using excessive force against youth-led protests that led to the resignation of the education minister last month. In a report released on Monday, the rights group said officers deployed pellet guns, tear gas, batons, and electric shock devices against demonstrators in New Delhi and the eastern state of Bihar.
The protests began over the leak of the national medical entrance exam known as NEET. They quickly grew into a wider movement focused on unemployment, limited opportunities for young people, and criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government. Demonstrations in the capital turned violent on July 20 when thousands of protesters tried to march toward parliament.
Amnesty said it verified witness accounts and visual evidence showing police used pellet-firing shotguns, tear gas launchers, grenades, batons, and electric shock devices. The group also confirmed two instances in Bihar’s Siwan district where a police officer “unlawfully used lethal force against a crowd.” No one was killed in those incidents.
According to Amnesty, the weapons were deployed in ways that breached international law, global policing standards, and India’s own domestic guidelines. The organization acknowledged isolated cases of protesters throwing stones but described the overall police response as “state-sanctioned violence masked as crowd control.”
Delhi Police have given a different account. In a recent Supreme Court hearing, they stated that force was used only after protesters turned violent. Officers claimed anti-social elements posing as students caused serious injuries to security personnel.
India’s Supreme Court has already set up a panel to investigate violence by both police and demonstrators during the protests. On Friday, opposition leader Rahul Gandhi held a sit-in outside a Delhi police station with a 19-year-old protester who said he was injured by pellets. Gandhi demanded a proper investigation, and police later registered a case based on the complaint.
The protests, partly organized by the online Cockroach Janta Party, became one of the biggest challenges Modi has faced since winning a third term in 2024. What started as anger over exam irregularities expanded into a broader demand for better opportunities and accountability.
Amnesty’s findings add pressure on authorities as the court-appointed panel begins its work. The rights group’s report stands in sharp contrast to the official police narrative and keeps the debate over crowd control methods firmly in the public eye.
