Unhappy With Crime Footage Making Way To Social Media, Delhi Police To Limit Circulation Of CCTV Chunks

Delhi Police issued directives to all Deputy Commissioners of Police (DCPs) of districts and units to ensure strict adherence to these instructions.

New Delhi: Often, when an incident occurs, the trail of CCTV footage starts making waves on social media. In the age of social media trials, this adversely impacts the privacy of both the victim and the accused. Taking note of that, Delhi Police Commissioner Sanjay Arora has issued an order to district DCPs and unit heads to ensure that the CCTV footage is not shared with anyone. In case of a breach, the officers will be responsible for the supervision lapse.   

According to reports, the DCP pointed out several such incidents and arrived at a conclusion after analysing such instances of unwarranted circulation of sensitive CCTV footage. Arora issued directives to all Deputy Commissioners of Police (DCPs) of districts and units to ensure strict adherence to these instructions.

In cases where CCTV footage of a crime is leaked, the responsibility will fall solely on the Station House Officers (SHO), and strict action will be taken against them. Only cropped snapshots or still images, showcasing the best possible description of the suspect, should be shared strictly for the purpose of facilitating quick identification.   

For serious crimes, Arora noted that, in addition to the local police, special staff from the district and, in limited instances, teams from the Crime Branch/Special Cell may visit the crime scene. These units are also expected to adhere to the instructions, and local police should share snapshots or still images of the footage with them to address their inquiries.  

Earlier, many such videos went viral on social media. Most recently, in the Najafgarh case where a CCTV video showed two gunmen entering the salon and one of them shooting a man when the latter was probably pleading for his life. Another was the footage of a 16-year-old girl who was stabbed more than 20 times by a man outside her home in Delhi’s JJ Colony last year.