‘94 RTI pleas sought police station CCTV footage in A’bad in 2025’

Gandhinagar: The govt informed the assembly on Monday that 54 RTI applications were filed in 2024 and 94 in 2025 seeking CCTV footage from police stations in Ahmedabad city. Similarly, in Surat city, 32 RTI applications were filed in 2024 and 52 in 2025 to obtain CCTV footage from police station premises.In reply to a question by AAP MLA Gopal Italia, the govt said that during these two years, footage was provided in response to 40 applications in Ahmedabad and 22 in Surat.
In reply to another question, the govt said that footage could not be provided for 12 applications in Ahmedabad and 19 applications in Surat because the CCTV cameras were non-functional.In 2011, following a PIL alleging custodial torture at the city crime branch headquarters, the Gujarat high court ordered the installation of CCTV cameras in all police stations across the state.The issue resurfaced in 2022 when the HC sought a report on the installation and functioning of CCTVs in police stations after two women complained of being beaten following a dispute over a traffic violation at Vastrapur police station in Ahmedabad. The court noted that the CCTV cameras at the police station were not functioning.Similarly, the CCTV cameras at the city crime branch were not functioning when constable Chandrakant Makwana was killed by an accused, Manish Balai, at its headquarters in Gaekwad Haveli.In various cases alleging custodial torture or police misconduct, the HC has received petitions seeking directions to the police department to preserve CCTV footage from the concerned police stations as crucial evidence.