NEW DELHI: Delhi Police said its investigation has revealed that 101 individuals with murder charges, 284 people booked in dacoity and robbery cases, and 92 accused in sexual assault and other offences against women and children were part of the violence during the protesters’ march to Parliament on July 20.A report submitted by police commissioner Anurag Kumar to the govt details how the police examined a total of 2,873 criminals involved in attacking cops and vandalising vehicles. Of them, 989 were found to have criminal antecedents in heinous offences, it said.Action, including arrest and investigation against these individuals with criminal history is likely to continue; cases against students will be dropped, said sources.
The suspects were identified using FRS cameras, along with CCTV footage and videos recorded by police personnel and the public.Police: Force used only after repeated warnings ignoredSeveral suspects were tracked in areas where the violence occurred and were seen throwing stones, attacking cops, damaging govt vehicles and vandalising public property, police said.“Probe revealed a considerable number of persons present in and around the protest sites were not merely individuals with isolated criminal antecedents but included habitual and repeat offenders, several of whom have previous involvement in grave and heinous offences such as murder, attempt to murder, dacoity/robbery, rape, offences against women, Arms Act violations, kidnapping, snatching and narcotics-related offences,” the report, accessed by TOI , said.The list also includes 61 who were involved in rape cases, 25 in molestation cases, six booked under Pocso Act, 229 under Arms Act, 135 in snatching cases, 19 in kidnapping cases and 67 in offences under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.Of the 101 people with murder cases, 42 had been involved in two or more criminal cases, while 12 had criminal histories spanning at least 10 cases or more. Among the 62 people accused in attempt-to-murder cases, 25 had multiple criminal cases registered against them.Similarly, of the 284 people linked to dacoity and robbery, 155 had been involved in two or more criminal cases, including 31 with criminal histories spanning at least 10 cases or more. Among the rape accused, eight had been booked in multiple criminal cases. Six of the accused in molestation cases and nine of the accused in NDPSrelated offences were also found to be repeat offenders.According to the report, a permission had been granted only for a protest at Jantar Mantar and not for a march to Parliament. “However, the protesters continued to breach the barricades and reached very close to the parliament, sending its security apparatus into a tizzy,” a senior police officer said.Force was used only after repeated warnings were ignored and protesters continued to breach one barricade after another, police have said. “Even senior police officers, many of whom were assaulted and injured during the violence, exercised restraint for a considerable period before action was taken.”Apost-incident review was initiated examining the entire episode, including the role of miscreants who, police said, infiltrated the protest alongside genuine demonstrators. “Despite several police personnel sustaining injuries, the situation did not spiral completely out of control, demonstrating that the police response was marked by deliberate restraint rather than negligence,” the police said.
