NEW DELHI: The Delhi Police claims to have analysed around 100 facial recognition system-enabled CCTV recordings and social media videos from the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) protest at Jantar Mantar and the march towards Parliament to examine the criminal histories of people they could identify. It claims to have identified 2,873 individuals who were present during the protest, of whom 989 have prior criminal records involving serious offences.
Sources said the findings are based on cross-matching the footage with the Delhi Police’s existing criminal database.
Delhi Police also deployed AI-enabled smart glasses equipped with facial recognition, video analytics and thermal imaging capabilities to help personnel identify suspects. The exercise relied on existing criminal databases and dossier records maintained by different district police units and other agencies.
According to sources, the 989 individuals allegedly have criminal records involving offences such as murder, attempt to murder, dacoity, robbery, rape, crimes against women, violations of the Arms Act, kidnapping, snatching and offences under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
The analysis found that 101 identified individuals have previously been booked in murder cases, while 62 face charges of attempt to murder. Another 284 have criminal records related to dacoity and robbery.
The records also show that 61 individuals have been named in rape cases, six are accused under the POCSO Act, and 25 have been booked for offences against women, including outraging modesty. Additionally, 229 have cases under the Arms Act, 135 have been booked for snatching, 19 for kidnapping and 67 under the NDPS Act.
Jantar Mantar suspects face rape, murder bid charges
Police found that 42 of the 101 individuals booked in murder cases have been named in two or more criminal cases, including 12 who allegedly face 10 or more cases. Among those booked for attempt to murder, 25 of the 62 identified individuals also allegedly have multiple criminal cases.
Similarly, 155 of the 284 people linked to dacoity and robbery have been booked in more than one case, with 31 of them reportedly facing 10 or more criminal cases.
The data further showed that eight of the 61 individuals named in rape cases, six of the 25 booked for offences against women and nine of the 67 accused under the NDPS Act also allegedly have multiple criminal cases registered against them.
Police are now investigating the role of each identified individual to determine whether they were directly involved in the violence and whether the incidents were orchestrated as part of a larger conspiracy or by an organised network.
The CJP had been protesting at Jantar Mantar for 36 days over an alleged paper leak, demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. During the party’s Sansad Chalo march, clashes broke out between security personnel and protesters, mostly students, leaving several policemen and protesters injured. The protest was called off on Saturday after Pradhan resigned.