Interacting with the media, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi questioned the delay in registering the FIR in the pellet gun case, alleging that brakes in justice were being applied from the top.
“This is the first step towards justice. The case has been registered. It has been a month since he was hit by that bullet. Bullets are still lodged in his body. Three are in his eyes. He cannot see out of it. Three or four near his heart. A grave injustice has been done to this young man,” Gandhi said after the FIR was registered.
Questioning the delay, Rahul Gandhi raised concerns about access to justice, particularly for ordinary citizens, and alleged that senior authorities were responsible for the delay in registering the case.
Lochav also addressed media persons at the police station and said he had approached the Delhi Police with a seven-page complaint on August 14, but it was in vain.
The Delhi Police registered an FIR in connection with the pellet gun case under Sections 118 and 125 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. Section 118 deals with voluntarily causing hurt or grievous hurt using dangerous weapons or means, while Section 125 concerns acts endangering life or personal safety.
The FIR was filed after student protesters and victim Sahil Lochav, along with Rahul Gandhi and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, staged a sit-out at the Parliament Street police station on Friday morning. They remained at the police station for nearly eight hours, following which the FIR was filed.
Lochav sustained pellet gun injuries during last month’s student protest at Jantar Mantar. A pellet gun was fired at him on July 20, which was confirmed by an AIIMS report, saying that more than 200 shells were seen inside his body and three in his eye. He had lost vision in that eye, while three shells were near his heart and could not be removed.
He was admitted to Lady Hardinge, from where he was referred to AIIMS and underwent surgery, but his vision is yet not clear.