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New Delhi: Supreme Court judge Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, on Friday (September 4), expressed concern over the assault of unarmed protesters by police personnel during the recent students’ agitation at Jantar Mantar, Delhi, over the alleged irregularities in the NEET 2026 examination, saying the “detachment expected of police officers” appears to be disappearing.

Speaking at the launch of former security secretary Yashovardhan Azad’s book Policing the Republic, Justice Bhuyan said it was “very, very distressing” to see Indian Police Service (IPS) officers assaulting civilians.

“All of us are dismayed when we see young officers of the Indian Police Service personally going and assaulting protesters and demonstrators. This is something very, very distressing to observe,” he said, as quoted by The New Indian Express.

“The detachment expected of police officers somehow seems to be disappearing, and this is indeed a matter of grave concern,” Bhuyan added.

He noted that effective policing did not require excessive use of force or infringement of human rights, stressing that the police play a vital role in upholding public confidence in the state, especially for those citizens who encounter police officers in their daily lives, reported The New Indian Express.

“For most common people, a policeman on the street wearing a whistle and a lathi represents the power and authority of the state. When........

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