New Delhi | Congress leader Rahul Gandhi ended his over-six-hour dharna at the Parliament Street police station here on Friday, after an FIR was registered on a complaint from a young man who has suffered pellet injuries and said this is the first step towards justice.
Gandhi sat on the dharna outside the police station after police refused to lodge an FIR on 19-year-old Sahil Lochab's complaint.
"This is the first step towards justice and a case has been registered," Gandhi said, soon after the Delhi Police registered the FIR.
"There are pellets in his body and he cannot even see as he has suffered injuries in his eye. This is injustice with this youngster. For almost a month, he has been calling for the registration of an FIR and moving from one police station to another.
"After hours of protest, an FIR has been registered. One can imagine what the people of the country suffer when they seek justice. There are several rape victims and victims of intimidation and they continue to fight while seeking justice," the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha said.
Gandhi, who had earlier alleged that police are "under pressure from the top" for not registering a complaint, claimed that the FIR was lodged only after clearance from top authorities in the home ministry.
"The final FIR has been registered after an okay from the home secretary and (Home Minister) Amit Shah, then you can imagine who was stopping the registration of an FIR as these cops wanted to do so but were not allowed to do so," he said.
The Delhi Police registered the FIR in connection with the pellet injuries suffered by Lochab during the July 20 students' protest at Jantar Mantar.
"We have registered an FIR under sections 118 (voluntarily causing hurt or grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means) and 25 (act endangering life or personal safety of others) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita," a police officer said.
Gandhi, along with Lochab, first visited the Mandir Marg police station and sought the registration of the FIR. After his demand was not accepted, he went to the Parliament Street police station and met Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi district) Sachin Sharma.
After the discussion with Sharma failed to yield results, the Congress leader sat on the dharna at the police station, which also houses the DCP's office. Lochab and his mother were also there.
Sahil Lochab, who was allegedly injured with pellets during the July 20 protest at Jantar Mantar, on Friday thanked Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi for standing by him and helping get an FIR registered.
The 19-year-old also thanked people across the country for supporting him and praying for his recovery, saying he was standing before them because of their prayers.
The Delhi Police registered the FIR after Gandhi staged a sit-in at the Parliament Street police station, demanding action on Lochab’s complaint over alleged pellet injuries.
Lochab said Gandhi had spoken to him on Thursday, enquired about his health and asked about the status of the FIR. He told Gandhi that it had not been registered, following which the Congress leader promised to accompany him to the police station.
“It’s a bittersweet moment for me because even though the Leader of Opposition was present throughout the day, it took eight hours for them (Delhi Police) to file an FIR,” Lochab said.
“Being a victim myself with pellets lodged in me, they were not registering it. I have been running around since August 14 to register the complaint, but it got registered today,” he said.
The FIR has been registered under Sections 118 (voluntarily causing hurt or grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means) and 25 (act endangering life or personal safety of others) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, a police officer said.
"It's the first step towards justice," Pellet victim Sahil Lochab said.
Lochab’s mother said the FIR would not have been registered without Gandhi’s presence at the police station.
"We have been running from pillar to post for registering our complaint; today, finally, it got registered. Without LoP's presence, FIR wouldn't have been registered; we were turned away from 4 police stations before FIR was registered," Lochab’s mother told the media.
Gandhi, accompanied by Lochab, first visited the Mandir Marg police station. After his demand was not accepted, he went to the Parliament Street police station and met Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi district) Sachin Sharma.
When the discussion failed to resolve the issue, Gandhi sat on a dharna at the police station. Lochab and his mother were also present, while Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other senior party leaders later joined the protest.
