Former IPS officer and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Kiran Bedi has put forward a new idea to handle student protests. She shared her thoughts on X, tagging Home Minister Amit Shah, the PMO, and Delhi Police. Her suggestion comes at a time when student agitations have again become a talking point across the country.
She was one of the key leaders of the 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement led by Anna Hazare, and joined the BJP in January 2015. She unsuccessfully contested the 2015 Delhi Assembly election as the party’s chief minister candidate.
What Bedi proposed
Friends we have a solution to dealing with student protests.
Pl listen to this. @AmitShah @PMOIndia @PIB_India @PTI_News
Th civil defence can be the first line of defence, exactly like BSF is on the borders.
The riot police is standby for protection on need basis only.
Can… pic.twitter.com/068t3gW1ZH— Kiran Bedi (@thekiranbedi) July 23, 2026
Bedi said governments should look at using trained Civil Defence personnel as the first line of response during student protests. Riot police, in her view, should stay back and only step in if needed.
She explained that this would help avoid direct clashes between students and armed police. According to her post, Civil Defence teams could stand at the front while riot police watch from a distance. Their job would be to protect the Civil Defence staff, not confront the students first.
Bedi compared this idea to how the Border Security Force works on India’s borders. The BSF is usually the first line of defence before the Army gets involved. She feels the same model can work for handling student unrest.
Under this plan, riot police would move in only if the Civil Defence line is overrun or its personnel come under serious threat. Bedi said that armed police should act only to save life and property, and that any such action would need proper justification.
She pointed out that every Indian state already has a Civil Defence and Home Guards department. These departments have young men and women on their payrolls. Bedi believes this existing workforce can be trained again and turned into the front line for student agitations.
Equipment without weapons
Bedi’s post also touched on what protection the Civil Defence personnel should carry. She suggested cane shields to guard against stones and brick bats, along with body armour and helmets. She was firm that they should not carry sticks.
If the Civil Defence line has no weapons, the responsibility shifts to the protesting students. They would need to avoid provoking a situation that brings in armed riot police.
One more point Bedi raised was about accountability. She said the Civil Defence personnel would end up becoming witnesses to what happens on the ground. This, she argued, could help reduce the usual back and forth of allegations and counter allegations that follow such protests.