NEW DELHI: Amid allegations of excesses by security personnel during protests, Delhi Police has issued body-worn cameras to its officers and personnel deployed on the frontline across the New Delhi area, an official source said on Tuesday.
The bodycams have been issued to officers deployed across the New Delhi area, particularly those involved in crowd management and security arrangements around protest sites and roads leading to the Election Commission of India office, the source said.
A police source said the bodycams would help maintain a real-time video record of events and interactions between police personnel and protesters, besides providing evidence in case allegations are made against officers on duty.
"The bodycams are important, particularly when officers are dealing with large crowds, and there are allegations from either side. The recordings can help establish what happened during a protest," the source said.
The move comes amid heightened security in the New Delhi, Central Delhi and North Delhi districts following a series of demonstrations against the Election Commission over the SIR exercise. Police and paramilitary personnel have been deployed in large numbers, while multilayer barricades have been placed at several points to prevent protesters from entering restricted areas.
The deployment of bodycams assumes significance following complaints of alleged sexual harassment and manhandling made by three women journalists during a protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar at Jantar Mantar on October 2.
The journalists alleged that police personnel behaved inappropriately with them during the protest. One of the complainants alleged that an officer sexually assaulted her.
The New Delhi district police received the complaints and transferred them to the Crime Branch for a fair and impartial inquiry, an officer said.
The investigating agency is expected to examine the allegations and record statements of the complainants and other persons concerned.
The complaints have also led to protests by independent journalists and others outside Parliament Street police station, with demonstrators demanding registration of an FIR and examination of CCTV footage of the alleged incidents. No FIR had been registered in the matter, according to police sources.
The use of bodycams is also aimed at strengthening accountability during law-and-order deployments, particularly as police personnel are increasingly required to manage protests involving large groups of political workers, students and civil society members.
The recordings could provide investigators with an additional source of evidence while examining complaints against police personnel or allegations of misconduct by protesters, the source said.
The Delhi Police has also issued an advisory for journalists covering protests, asking them to carry valid identity cards.
"Journalists covering protests to carry valid identity cards issued by their respective organisations or valid PIB/DIP accreditation cards, and keep them visibly displayed at all times to facilitate identification by law enforcement at protest sites," the Delhi Police said.
In an advisory for journalists covering protests, police said media personnel should ensure that their presence or activities do not obstruct police operations or the movement of law enforcement personnel.