# Rahul Gandhi holds dharna after Delhi Police refuses FIR on pellet gun case 2026-08-21T07:44:11+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 3 independent outlets (6 source reports) Congress leader and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi staged a sit-in outside the New Delhi DCP office on Friday, after Delhi Police allegedly refused to register an FIR over the use of pellet guns during a July 20 student protest. Gandhi accompanied 19-year-old Sahil Lochab, who claims he suffered pellet gun injuries to his eye during the march, to the Parliament Street Police Station to demand action. According to the Congress, Lochab first filed a written complaint on August 14 but police did not provide an investigation officer number or acknowledgement. India Today reports that Delhi Police has repeatedly denied using pellet guns, while the CRPF has remained silent. However, medical reports and an India Today investigation have raised questions about that denial. Times Now reports that after Gandhi's dharna, the complaint was filed and will be forwarded to the Crime Branch for investigation. Delhi DCP Sachin Sharma held talks with Gandhi, and police said action will be taken as per law. The protest stems from a July 20 'Sansad Chalo' march by students demanding the resignation of then Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over exam paper leaks. Pradhan resigned days later. The Congress has alleged that Union Home Minister Amit Shah ordered the use of pellet guns, a charge the government has not officially addressed. Gandhi has demanded a judicial inquiry into the incident. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The coverage splits on who is the credible actor. Pro-government framing, seen in Times Now and India Today's wire-style updates, centres on police saying 'action will be taken as per law' and the complaint being forwarded to Crime Branch, implying the system is working. Critical framing, led by ABP Live and the Congress-aligned quotes in Times Now, foregrounds the police's refusal to give an I/O number and accuses Amit Shah of ordering pellet gun use. The measured read: the FIR was eventually filed after Gandhi's protest, so the immediate standoff is resolved, the open question is whether the Crime Branch investigation will be independent or face political pressure. Watch for the status of the FIR and any medical evidence released by police. ## Coverage Coverage: 6 sources, 2 government-critical, 3 neutral, 1 sensationalist - news.abplive.com (government critical) Leads with 'refuses FIR' and Congress allegations of denial of I/O number - indiatoday.in (neutral report) Live updates focus on meeting and police saying 'action as per law' - indiatoday.in (2) (neutral report) Balanced coverage of Congress allegations and police denial of pellet guns - indiatoday.in (3) (neutral report) Straight report on Gandhi visit, includes Congress demands without editorialising - indiatoday.in (4) (government critical) Highlights India Today's own investigation raising questions on police denial - timesnownews.com (sensationalist) Uses 'sharp attack' and Congress quotes accusing Amit Shah directly This story was synthesised by AI from the 6 sources linked above. Updated: this story now draws on 6 sources. Last updated 2026-08-21T08:21:29+00:00. Tags: Delhi Police, Dharmendra Pradhan, Jantar Mantar, Rahul Gandhi, Sahil Lochab, Sansad Chalo March Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/rahul-gandhi-sits-on-dharna-after-delhi-police-refuses-pellet-gun-fir/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/rahul-gandhi-sits-on-dharna-after-delhi-police-refuses-pellet-gun-fir/#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/