Child rape: Protesters demand cops' scalp, Sonia wants action

NEW DELHI: The capital seemed to have been pushed into another spiral of angry protests on Saturday when for most part of the day the Delhi Police headquarters at ITO remained under siege. The brutal rape of a five-year-old in Gandhi Nagar, east Delhi, brought hordes of protesters of various colours and political affiliations out on the streets, disrupting traffic and sending political temperatures soaring.
The crowd — which had members of Aam Aadmi Party, various women’s organizations and students’ unions — taunted and ridiculed the cops even as they pushed at the barricades manned by the police in large numbers. A common demand was sacking of the three cops – Gandhi Nagar SHO, first investigating officer and ACP BS Ahlawat — who had been suspended on Friday and criminal proceedings to be initiated against them. The first two were alleged to have made lapses in the investigation while Ahlawat had slapped a young girl at Dayanand Hospital on Friday. A demand for sacking of police chief Neeraj Kumar was also made.
There was stone-pelting at the Gandhi Nagar police station as the protests spread. AIIMS, where the child is now being treated, union home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde’s residence on Krishna Menon Marg and Sonia Gandhi’s residence, 10 Janpath, were popular venues for protests and gave the fully geared police some anxious moments. But things didn’t spin out of control. Rajpath was barricaded, with a water cannon at hand, to prevent any repeat of the Nirbhaya agitation.
For once, the political leadership was not out of step with the public mood. Congress general secretary Janardan Dwivedi told reporters that party president Sonia Gandhi had condemned the incident. "She has appealed to the government and the administration that action and not words were required to ensure that such incidents never happened again," he said.
The man at the centre of the conflagaration, accused Manoj Kumar Sah (22), was finally brought to Delhi on three days of transit remand in the evening after being rescued from protesters at Patna airport. He had been hiding in his in-laws’ house in a village in Muzaffarpur district of Bihar.
His victim was, meanwhile, making slow progress at AIIMS with the doctors declaring her to be "stable, conscious, alert and talking". She was well enough to ask her parents for food.
The police was accused of prolonging her trauma by delaying investigations. "Suspension or transfer will not work. We want ACP Ahlawat sacked and criminal proceedings against the investigating officer and SHO for not acting in time," said Kavita Krishnan of All India Progressive Women’s Association, participating in the demonstration at the police headquarters. Some organisations had a memorandum for the police chief. "Six organizations have signed this memorandum. It demands that criminal proceedings be initiated against the SHO, investigating officer and ACP," said Sehba from AIDWA.
The cops were offered bribes and bangles to wear but they bore all the insults with equanimity without losing their cool. There was a time when scuffles broke out between some protesters and the cops. At least three times the protesters gheraoed police officers and chased them till the ITO red light. By noon, some protesters were seen trying to storm the police headquarters by clambering over barricades and also damaging them but the cops managed to keep them at bay.
The protests had started around 10am with Aam Aadmi Party volunteers gathering on Indraprastha Marg. An hour later, women’s rights organizations turned up. Protesters from All India Democratic Women's Association, All India Progressive Women Association, JNU Students’ Union, Students’ Federation of India, All India Students' Association and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad choked the important traffic artery at ITO, triggering massive jams throughout the day.
The crowd called for police reforms and sensitization. "Laws are there but the cops, who are the enforcers, are lacking. After Nirbhaya, we thought things would change but we were wrong," said Tanvi, a student. Another protester, Reema Ganguly, said the police were unable to deal with a progressive citizenry.
"Since December 16, there have been changes. But these changes are all too superficial and are more in terms of police propaganda than anything else. Women officers have been promoted, police role has been stressed upon and POCSO has been implemented. But when you go to the police station, you see that these measures are only on paper," said Deependra Kumar Singh, who runs an NGO, Pehal, that works with children in Rohini.
While most protesters had left by 4PM, volunteers of Aam Aadmi Party continued to protest till late in the evening. In a statement, they demanded setting up of a citizens’ security force. They also demanded removal of the home minister.
(With inputs from Dwaipayan Ghosh)