‘Protect the protectors’: Police personnel besiege HQ, alleging cop-out by seniors

NEW DELHI: A day after striking lawyers assaulted a cop quite brazenly — two days after the clashes at Tis Hazari — about 3,000 cops laid an unprecedented siege to the Delhi Police headquarters on Tuesday, leading to an 11-hour standoff. These men and women — ranging from constables to inspectors — had launched an agitation for the entire force to reclaim their dignity and demand a safe environment.

Their anger against commissioner Amulya Patnaik for what they perceived as inadequate support was palpable. The protest, which began at 9am, had initially been announced as a brief one and the agitators had said they would leave once their bosses agreed to their demands. Tempers rose when Patnaik did not turn up to meet them and sent other officers.
Demanding that the police chief make an appearance and take a stance on their behalf at a time when the force’s morale was ebbing after being cornered in law and order situations, the cops stood at the headquarters holding placards demanding justice. As the day progressed, they were joined by their families.
With one side of Vikas Marg, an important artery closed, traffic soon got stalled. The cops also barricaded Bahardur Shah Zafar Marg at the Delhi Gate end and a U-turn near Ferozeshah Kotla, throwing traffic into a tailspin. Finally, Patnaik gave in and stepped out in order to pacify his men but was heckled.
They stood their ground, refusing to heed his request to return to work. As the clock ticked, the crowd swelled. The protest went on till 7.45pm until the news came that lieutenant governor Anil Baijal had stepped in and conceded several of their demands, including filing of a review petition on the Delhi high court ruling in the Tis Hazari matter and giving Rs 25,000 as ex-gratia to the policemen injured in the clashes with the lawyers.
Cops from different units had, at 9am, started gathering outside the police headquarters at ITO, holding placards with messages like “Save the khaki” and “Protect the protectors”. Soon, a sit-in started. When instead of Patnaik, DCP New Delhi Eish Singhal and additional DCP, Central, Amit Sharma, turned up to pacify them, the protesters became defiant. JCPs Devesh Srivastava and Rajesh Khurana, too, tried to convince them to step into the lawns inside and place their demands before the police commissioner.
The protesters then began chanting slogans about the commissioner being scared of his own men. After that, special commissioner (Crime) Satish Golcha too addressed the protesters but he too was rebuffed and the demand for the commissioner to step out and address them grew louder. Finally, Patnaik came out.
Addressing his men, he said: “We have to behave like a disciplined force. The government and the people expect us to uphold the law and it is our big responsibility. I urge you to resume duty. The last few days have been testing for us. A judicial inquiry is underway and I request you to have faith in the process.”
He was greeted with hooting and slogans. The commissioner was forced to return to his office and the gates were locked. Emotions ran high among the protesters after this, with some even demanding that the commissioner be replaced with someone like former IPS officers Kiran Bedi and Deepak Mishra.
Senior cops then went into a huddle during which it was decided that the most important demands would be met immediately. Soon, the lieutenant governor summoned a senior cop and gave his consent. Meanwhile, the protests went on till 7pm with Golcha and Devesh Srivastava trying to convince the protesters to disperse. Some of them instead got into a heated argument with them. The final call for calling off the protest was given around 7.45pm.
Members of Third Battalion that was involved in the Tis Hazari Court fracas were prevented from joining the protest and confined to their headquarters in west Delhi’s Vikaspuri. They squatted at the training ground in solidarity with their colleagues.