# Delhi Police told not to be ‘villains’ in Gen Z protest videos 2026-08-23T13:41:27+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 2 independent outlets The Delhi Police has issued new guidelines to its personnel on how to behave during protests, following clashes with protesters at Jantar Mantar last month. The Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) advises officers to stay calm, avoid anger, and not get into arguments, especially when being recorded by tech-savvy protesters. "Your angry face is their content," the guidelines state, urging personnel to "refuse that role." The Indian Express reported the SOP covers all 15 districts. Thefederal.com reports the guidelines tell officers to maintain a neutral expression and look straight ahead even when protesters put phones in their faces. Rediff.com notes a senior police officer said similar directions were given during the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) protest, where videos of verbal altercations circulated widely. The SOP also advises against pushing away phones, snatching objects, or reacting to mockery. Male personnel have been told to avoid touching female protesters, with women officers to handle such situations. The guidelines also cover assisting protesters in need, such as those who faint or are injured, and using respectful language like "Uncle, come this way." Restrictions under Section 163 of the BNSS remain in force at Jantar Mantar, barring unauthorised gatherings of five or more people. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Both sources report the SOP as a straightforward, neutral response to a well-documented problem: viral videos of police-protestor confrontations. Thefederal.com slightly foregrounds the police perspective by leading with the SOP's detailed do's and don'ts, while rediff.com gives equal weight to the protestors' context and the resulting social media criticism. Neither outlet adopts a government-critical or sensationalist stance, both frame it as an operational update. The measured takeaway: this SOP is a pragmatic attempt to de-escalate public order situations in the age of smartphones, but its effectiveness will be judged by future incidents. Watch for the first major protest where these rules are tested. The summary: Delhi Police issued SOP to officers after Jantar Mantar clashes, telling them to stay calm and avoid being filmed as "villains" by Gen Z protesters. The guidelines cover camera behaviour, language, and assistance, with Section 163 BNSS still in force. ## Coverage Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral - thefederal.com (neutral report) Presents SOP as an operational update, no criticism of police or government. - rediff.com (neutral report) Reports SOP with context of social media criticism, but no editorial slant. This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above. Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources. Last updated 2026-08-23T22:05:25+00:00. Tags: Delhi Police, Gen Z, Jantar Mantar, The Indian Express Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/delhi-police-issues-sop-for-dealing-with-gen-z-protesters/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/delhi-police-issues-sop-for-dealing-with-gen-z-protesters/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/