Now Reading: SC to examine facial recognition; police probe AI use by protesters
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SC to examine facial recognition; police probe AI use by protesters
The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear a plea challenging Delhi Police’s use of facial recognition technology and biometric surveillance against protesters at Jantar Mantar during the Cockroach Janta Party’s 'Chalo…
The Story in Brief
The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear a plea challenging Delhi Police’s use of facial recognition technology and biometric surveillance against protesters at Jantar Mantar during the Cockroach Janta Party’s 'Chalo Sansad' march on July 20. A bench issued notice to the Centre and Delhi Police, tagging the case with other petitions on the protest.
Separately, police sources told PTI that investigators have found evidence that some protesters used AI tools to learn methods of countering tear gas, such as wet jute bags. Police are collecting digital evidence, but no AI platforms have been named yet.
The Indian Opinion
Both the police’s claim of AI-assisted protest planning and the allegation of mass facial recognition lack public evidence so far. The narrative of protesters as tech-savvy criminals plays to fear, while the narrative of blanket surveillance chilling free speech ignores the need to prevent violence. The real test will come on August 18 when the Supreme Court hears arguments. Can police show that the surveillance led to actual arrests of violent elements, and can the petitioner prove biometric data was mishandled? Until then, watch for the court’s interim order.
Sources (3): thehansindia.com, hindustantimes.com, timesnownews.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 3 sources linked above.
