Congress leaders, who have been accompanying Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi during his sit-in outside a Delhi police station on Friday, asserted that the agitation will continue till the police registers a fresh First Information Report (FIR) as sought by a purported pellet-gun victim.

LoP Gandhi, who was later joined by Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, is staging the sit-in outside the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police at Delhi’s Parliament Street Police Station, protesting the alleged refusal of the police to register an FIR on a complaint by a student, Sahil Lochab, who the Congress claimed, suffered pellet-gun injuries during last month’s protests demanding education reforms at Jantar Mantar.

Speaking to reporters, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh said: “His (Lochab’s) lawyer has demanded the registration of an FIR. This is not some general FIR but rather a strictly defined one, concerning the illegal manner in which police action took place (against Sahil), where pellet guns were used.”Maintaining that their demand has not been accepted yet, he said: “Discussions must be going on. They must have spoken to the Home Secretary, they must have spoken to the Commissioner of Police, Delhi, and ultimately, they have to speak to the Home Minister. But so far, nothing has been conveyed to us.”

“Rahul ji is absolutely clear: Until an FIR is registered, and a new FIR registration number is given, we will not leave from here,” he asserted.Admitting that a general FIR regarding complaints against the alleged police action during the July 20 Parliament march has been registered, Ramesh specified that the pellet gun victim has sought a new FIR.”It is completely unacceptable and condemnable that the BJP is viewing the matter through the lens of polarisation.”Congress MP Kishori Lal Sharma also took part in the agitation.

“This is a very shameful matter. The democratic right of an ordinary citizen states that if any injustice is done to him, an FIR should be registered. But they are not even registering that as the government is scared,” Sharma remarked while speaking to IANS.”The Leader of the Opposition had to come here… Does any investigation take place without registering an FIR? Why is the government scared about the truth coming out regarding who ordered the use of pellet guns? The Home Minister didn’t come to the Parliament and FIRs are also not being registered,” he said.

Congress leader Mukul Wasnik, who was also present at the site, said: “Our fight will continue till the government reveals the truth regarding who ordered the firing of pellet guns on students.”Meanwhile, Congress MP Pramod Tiwari told reporters in Uttar Pradesh that Rahul Gandhi has gone to “secure the right of a victim”.

“The pellet gun was fired on the 20th (of July). Today, it has been over a month, yet no FIR has been filed so far. So, Rahul Gandhi went to file an FIR to seek justice in accordance with the laws of India. Under Indian law—and anywhere in the world—filing an FIR is every victim’s absolute right. He went there to secure the right of a victim, and all of us stand with him in this struggle,” he said.Further, he accused the Centre of “shielding the accused”.In Rajasthan, Congress leader Sachin Pilot said: “Rahul Gandhi is making every effort to ensure that those people get justice…The youths who were hit by pellet guns…Everyone has the right to seek justice…”

Jammu and Kashmir’s senior religious leader and chief cleric, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, delivered the Friday sermon at the Jama Masjid in Srinagar, saying that the historic pulpit has always stood for the rights of the people.

Mirwaiz Farooq said that after nearly two weeks of restrictions, during which he was ‘prevented’ from delivering the Friday sermon at Jama Masjid and also ‘denied’ the opportunity to address the gathering of Khwaja Digar at Naqshband Sahib, he was once again among the people.

He said that every opportunity to be there he “counted as a blessing from Allah”, as restrictions and attempts to “silence the pulpit, unfortunately, seemed to be part of the state policy” right now. He said it was a time to bear with patience and continue the good work, however possible.

Addressing those who placed these restrictions, Mirwaiz said that the pulpit has for generations played an important role in educating individuals and shaping society on religious and moral lines. “It has helped in creating awakening and awareness among people not only regarding their rights but also their duties,” he added.

He said that whenever the need arose, it became their forceful voice, articulated their concerns and advocated their aspirations. It has promoted peaceful coexistence among communities and strongly voiced minority rights, he said.

Mirwaiz said that the activities have always been in accordance with Islamic teachings — peaceful, principled and dignified; dialogue over confrontation and issue-based over personal. “Inshallah, it will continue to do so whenever given the chance. It is the legacy of my forefathers and the shared inheritance of the people of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.

He also heads the Awami Action Committee (AAC), which has been declared an unlawful organisation by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

The AAC was banned for five years by the MHA under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) on March 11, 2025.

The government cited the group’s involvement in anti-national activities, secessionist propaganda and supporting terrorism.

The Dwarka District Police have arrested a 26-year-old Nigerian national, who was a proclaimed offender in an earlier narcotics case, and recovered 8.43 grams of amphetamine from his possession, officials said on Friday.The arrest was made by the Anti-Narcotics Cell of the Dwarka District Police during ‘Operation VISTA 1.0’, a special drive launched to verify overstaying foreigners and check suspicious persons staying in hotels.

According to the officials, the Delhi Police Commissioner recently launched the operation to verify foreigners who have overstayed in the country. Following directions from Dwarka Deputy Commissioner of Police Kushal Pal Singh and under the supervision of ACP Operations Cell Subhash Malik, the Anti-Narcotics Cell was tasked with tracing overstaying foreigners and checking suspicious individuals staying in hotels across the district.On August 11, a team of the Anti-Narcotics Cell, headed by Inspector Satish Kumar Yadav and comprising Sub Inspectors Prem Narayan, Naveen and Naveen Kumar, Head Constable Vikas, and Constables Rahul and Vinod, was deployed as part of the operation.

Based on technical surveillance and human intelligence, the police apprehended a foreign national from a hotel in Mohan Garden.The accused was identified as Kingsley Eze, son of Eze, a resident of Anambra State, Nigeria.During his personal search, police recovered 8.43 grams of amphetamine, classified as an intermediate quantity under the relevant provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

Following the recovery, an FIR No. 205/2026 was registered under Sections 8 and 22 of the NDPS Act at Mohan Garden Police Station in Dwarka.During interrogation, the accused told the police that he had arrived in India in 2019 on a business visa.Police said that further verification revealed that Kingsley Eze had been declared a proclaimed offender by a court in connection with FIR No. 940/2022, registered under Section 22 of the NDPS Act and Section 14A of the Foreigners Act at Nihal Vihar Police Station.He was declared a proclaimed offender through a court order dated May 30, 2026, police said.

According to the police, the accused had earlier been involved in a case related to the alleged supply of heroin and had been absconding while staying at a hotel in the Mohan Garden area. His arrest came during the ongoing VISTA 1.0 operation.The police said the recovery of amphetamine from the accused marked another step in the Dwarka District Police’s campaign against narcotics, being carried out under the slogan, “Nasha par Lagam, Desh ko Salam”.Further investigation is underway to identify and trace the supplier of the seized narcotic substance and determine the wider network, if any, connected to the accused.