CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas has alleged that Delhi Police and Central Reserve Police Force personnel manhandled him at Connaught Place in New Delhi on Sunday, October 11, 2026, while he was speaking to journalists during protests demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. The MP from Kerala has written to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant seeking an independent, court-supervised investigation into the incident.
In his letter to the CJI, Brittas alleges he was forcibly dragged nearly 50 metres, lifted bodily into the air and into a police vehicle, pinned to the seat and assaulted even after identifying himself as a sitting Member of Parliament. He says a Deputy Commissioner of Police later ordered his release after finding the detention unlawful, and that he suffered breathing difficulties before being abandoned by the roadside. Brittas has also written to the President and to the Rajya Sabha Chairman over the alleged assault.
The MP has sought a Special Investigation Team comprising officers unconnected with the Delhi Police or the CRPF to probe the incident under court supervision. He has also demanded the preservation of all evidence, including videos of the incident, duty rosters, wireless logs and deployment records. His letter points out that the alleged assault came within hours of Supreme Court directions cautioning against the detention of peaceful protesters.
The CPI(M) has shared a video purportedly showing Brittas injured — half-lying on the steps of a police van with a red-stained cloth over part of his face — before he was moved to an autorickshaw. The party circulated the visuals widely, triggering sharp reactions from opposition leaders. Delhi Police has not publicly detailed its version of the events, and the exact timing and context of the footage are not independently established.
Meanwhile, the Students’ Federation of India has alleged that its leaders — national president Adarsh M. Saji, Delhi state secretary Sooraj Elamon and CEC member Abhijith Manilal — along with hundreds of members, were attacked and detained while marching from Connaught Place and Rajiv Chowk towards Jantar Mantar. The student body released visuals of injured activists inside police vans and alleged kicking, beating and harassment of its members during the crackdown.
Sunday’s agitation was the second consecutive day of protests backed by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) and opposition parties, after Delhi Police denied permission for the Jantar Mantar gathering. More than 30,000 police and paramilitary personnel were deployed across the capital, and over 7,000 protesters were detained on Saturday, October 10. Among those detained on Saturday were former chief ministers Arvind Kejriwal, Mamata Banerjee, Pinarayi Vijayan and Manik Sarkar.
It must be noted that all the allegations described here are those made by Brittas, the CPI(M) and the SFI. Independent verification of how the MP sustained his injuries is still pending, and no formal police rebuttal was cited in the reports checked. The sequence of events inside the police van remains a matter of dispute until the CCTV footage, wireless logs and duty records the MP has asked to be preserved are examined.
The incident has acquired political weight because it involves a sitting parliamentarian, raising questions about privilege, protocol and the treatment of elected representatives during demonstrations in the capital. With the MP seeking the CJI’s intervention and a court-supervised probe, the matter now hinges on whether the judiciary takes cognisance of the plea and whether Delhi Police issues its own detailed account of what transpired at Connaught Place on Sunday.
