Delhi Police personnel deployed at Jantar Mantar during protests demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation were allowed to remain without name tags as a deliberate security measure, officials familiar with the matter said.
The decision was taken after police personnel involved in the July 20 Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protests were allegedly identified and targeted on social media. Officers involved in crowd management subsequently told senior officials during internal review meetings that their identities, and those of their families, had been circulated online after the July crackdown.
The move has since drawn criticism, particularly because police were accused of using excessive force during the July protests. Experts said there are no written rules specifically requiring or prohibiting police personnel from wearing name tags, although avoiding identification has long been an operational practice in areas affected by insurgency.
Why police personnel were allowed to remove tags
During the first day of the latest protests against Kumar on Friday, several demonstrators filmed police personnel and questioned them about the absence of name tags.
Some officers told protesters that their tags had fallen off during the commotion, while others said they had forgotten to attach them. Some said they had deliberately removed the tags so they would not fall off, while several others declined to explain their absence.
According to officials aware of the internal discussions, the decision was linked directly to experiences during the July 20 CJP protests. Senior officers involved in crowd management told their superiors that they and their families had been identified and targeted on social media because of their role in controlling the demonstrations.
“Many officers said their families were called out by friends or in social circles,” a police officer familiar with the review meetings said. Some officers also reported that their families had been targeted by colleagues at work and through memes circulated on social media.
The officers were subsequently assured that no action would be taken against personnel who removed their name tags as long as they were performing their duties within the law.
Most Indian Police Service officers retained their tags during the latest deployment because they are generally easily identifiable, the officer said. However, many junior personnel were permitted to work without them.
July violence shaped the latest security strategy
The July 20 CJP march followed weeks of protests and a hunger strike at Jantar Mantar. Thousands of demonstrators attempted to march towards Parliament demanding the resignation of then Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination paper leaks.
Police used tear gas and baton charges after protesters attempted to breach several layers of barricades. Videos circulated online appeared to show some protesters being beaten, while Delhi Police maintained that the use of force became necessary after the demonstrators turned violent.
Several Delhi Police and central armed police forces personnel were subsequently criticised over allegations of disproportionate force. Some were filmed slapping or assaulting protesters and deliberately tripping them.
The Rapid Action Force also began a verification exercise into allegations of excessive force and pellet-gun use during the July 20 protest, with a formal court of inquiry to be considered after the verification process.
The latest protests have also resulted in fresh allegations against police. Three women journalists accused Delhi Police personnel of sexual harassment while covering a demonstration on October 3. The Crime Branch has been assigned to examine the allegations, including CCTV footage and other video evidence.
Police tighten scrutiny of influencers and alleged reporters
Officials said another lesson from the July protests was the growing presence of influencers who, according to police, posed as media personnel while recording officers and creating content for social media.
A second police officer said personnel were specifically instructed to identify such individuals during the latest demonstrations. Police have also been checking identity cards of people claiming to be reporters.
“Time will tell the role or impact of the influencers in these protests,” the officer said, while alleging that some influencers were conducting live sessions, recording police personnel, interviewing them and creating memes that identified individual officers.
Delhi Police personnel were also trained to remain composed when approached by influencers with mobile phones and questioned about their actions, and not to feel intimidated or respond in a manner that could escalate confrontations.
Following a review after the July protests, the CRPF’s Rapid Action Force barred its personnel from giving interviews.
Police have also conducted anti-riot drills and training sessions ahead of the protests against Kumar. Delhi Police and CAPF personnel have been preparing for possible crowd-control situations as demonstrations over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls continue.
On Friday, Delhi Police registered three FIRs over the protests near Jantar Mantar, including allegations of disobedience of orders, obstruction and use of criminal force against public servants. Around 550 people were detained during the demonstrations, according to reports.
No-name-tag practice has precedent in conflict zones
The use of a no-name-tag strategy is not unprecedented for Indian security forces. Such practices have been followed in Left Wing Extremism-affected areas, parts of the Northeast and Jammu and Kashmir, where identifying individual personnel can expose them to targeting.
Photographs of personnel involved in anti-insurgency operations have also traditionally been published with the faces of special forces members blurred.
Experts said, however, that there are no written rules specifically laying down whether police personnel must wear or remove their name tags. The practice of concealing identities has instead developed as an operational measure in conflict and high-risk environments.
The issue has become particularly contentious in Delhi because several people in civilian clothes claiming to be police personnel were caught attacking protesters during the July demonstrations. Influencers subsequently identified some of those individuals as people who were not part of the Delhi Police.
Self-styled influencer Swatantra Bhardwaj was arrested in connection with allegations that he assaulted a 38-year-old man during a CJP protest at Jantar Mantar. A Delhi court later granted him interim bail after he had spent more than 10 days in custody.
The latest deployment therefore reflects a balancing act for the police: maintaining identifiable senior leadership on the ground while allowing some junior personnel to conceal their names amid concerns that images and identities could be used to target them online. At the same time, renewed scrutiny over police conduct has kept questions of accountability and identification at the centre of the protests.