‘Preserve ammunition log of RAF deployed at Jantar Mantar’
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday said that pellet guns cannot be banned as long as the existing advisory permits their use for crowd control in exceptional circumstances by security agencies, while making it clear that allegations of specific misuse can be examined on a case-by-case basis.
The top court took note of a plea on the use of metallic pellet guns during the recent students’ protests against the NEET paper leak in Delhi and asked the Centre to preserve the ammunition log of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) deployed at the Jantar Mantar.
Observing that the police, as per the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) advisory, are empowered to use pellet guns in exceptional situations, a bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana termed “vague” the prayer in the plea seeking a complete ban on such usage.
“Prayers are not to use pellet guns. In exceptional cases, police regulations permit the use of pellet guns. If you are interested in phasing out pellet guns, you will have to challenge that very provision as ultra vires to Article 21 (right to life),” Justice Bagchi said.
The bench took note of the submissions of senior advocate Vrinda Grover, appearing for the petitioners, and asked the Delhi government to provide the best treatment to Prashant Kumar, Sheikh Irshad Mansoori and others who suffered pellet gun injuries during the July 20 protest here.
Former central information commissioner and retired IPS officer Yashovardhan Azad and the two victims had moved the court seeking a complete ban on the use of metallic pellet guns to deal with law and order situations.
The bench issued a notice to the Centre and the Inspector General of Police, RAF, on the plea by Azad and the two victims.
At the outset, Justice Bagchi said the prayer for a ban on the use of pellet guns for civilian crowd dispersal was “vague” without challenging the police regulations, which permit the use of such weapons.
Grover said it was not easy to find such regulations in the public domain, and urged the bench to direct the Centre to place them on record.
Singh and Mansoori reportedly suffered pellet injuries during the ‘Sansad Chalo’ march called by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) on July 20.
Grover said as regards the petitioners, metallic pellets were used, and they were recovered from their bodies.
“I am not saying pellet guns should not be in the armoury of the RAF or not. Here it is different. They have used metallic pellets,” she said.
The bench said it was not averse to examining the use of pellets in a particular incident and the petitioners must show if it was permissible under a “graded approach”.
The senior lawyer said she was confining her reliefs to metallic pellets.
“There is no standing order of the Delhi Police which permit the use of pellets. That is why my difficulty arises, and I have to rely on BPRD. If there is such a standing order, the Union may place it on record. I am sure the Union and the Delhi Police do not wish to fire pellets on innocent youngsters,” she said.
“I could not find any such standing order of the Delhi Police at all,” Grover said.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the government will do whatever is necessary to assist the bench.
Grover said the top court on July 28 directed the preservation of CCTV, drone and body camera footage and wireless logs, and did not specifically refer to the ammunition logs of the RAF.
“Whatever is required for investigation will be preserved,” the solicitor general said.
