Delhi Police personnel were removing identity badges before detaining protesters: CPI MP to Amit Shah

CPI MP P. Sandosh Kumar on Saturday (October 3, 2026) alleged that Delhi Police personnel have been removing or concealing their identity badges before detaining or using force against protesters and urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to order a time-bound inquiry into the practice.

In a letter to the Union Home Minister, Mr. Kumar sought his intervention into repeated use of violence, arbitrary detentions, manhandling and other unlawful practices by the Delhi Police while dealing with democratic protests.

The National Secretariat Member of the CPI was himself detained on Friday (October 2, 2026) along with CPI workers and cadres of the AISF and AIYF during a protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

Democratic rights

He expressed serious concern that the Delhi Police, which is directly answerable to the Union Home Ministry, has repeatedly responded to peaceful political mobilisation with “violence, mass detentions, internet shutdowns and manhandling” instead of protecting citizens exercising their democratic rights at a protest site designated by the Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal (NGT).

Citing the Supreme Court’s directions in D.K. Basu v. State of West Bengal and Delhi Police Standing Order No. 51, the Rajya Sabha MP said that identification is essential for accountability when police exercise coercive powers against citizens.

“This is not a minor procedural matter: identification is fundamental to accountability when the State exercises coercive power against citizens,” he said.

Need for inquiry

Demanding a time-bound inquiry into the conduct of Delhi Police personnel, Mr. Kumar called for investigation into the use of force, arbitrary detentions, removal or concealment of identity badges, manhandling of protesters, deployment of plain-clothes personnel and the use of facial recognition systems.

He urged the Union Home Minister to ensure that police personnel deployed at Jantar Mantar remain identifiable and accountable and that constitutional safeguards, Supreme Court directives and Delhi Police’s own rules are strictly followed.

“Democratic dissent cannot be met with methods reminiscent of the British Raj police. The Delhi Police must understand that its duty is to protect citizens and facilitate their constitutional rights, not to intimidate, assault or silence them,” he said.