Cockroach protests lead to confrontation between government and opposition

The aftermath of the students protests at Jantar Mantar and adjoining areas, besides the accompanying violence, continues to be a subject of major confrontation between the ruling dispensation and the Opposition, with the government appearing to be determined to take action against the protestors who infringed law and also attacked the police personnel. The Prime Minister on Friday stepped in and extended an olive branch to the protestors, maintaining that he was willing to forgive them and they should be a part of the journey towards Viksit Bharat. The opposition has lashed out and claimed that the issue of paper leaks and the excesses on the students needed accountability and not forgiveness.

The face-off shall continue and Parliament is likely to witness many more unruly scenes. The Cockroach Janata Party, which was in the forefront of the massive student protests, is reconsidering the resumption of the agitation, claiming that the government has not kept its word which was given during the negotiations with two ministers. In the meantime, in an attempt to tarnish the protestors, the Delhi police appears to have indicted itself inadvertently. It has officially claimed that around 2,500 anti-social elements including more than 800 who were accused of murder, attempt to murder, robbery, dacoity and rape were part of the protestors. The question that arises is that if such people were roaming on the roads freely, was it not the responsibility of the Delhi police to arrest them and put them behind bars? Has the police not failed in its duty in keeping the city safe? The charge of the students is that these undesirable people were deliberately allowed to come to the protest site since the police wanted to defame the students. The cops have also been accused of parking vehicles laden with stones at the Jantar Mantar before the march to Parliament commenced. 

This is a subject matter of inquiry and investigations, and no premature conclusions should be made. However, it is evident that the Delhi police, which otherwise, has excelled in crowd control, did not perform to its best and expected levels. The practice in the past used to be to always appoint the most experienced officers at least one or two levels in the New Delhi district, to bring about some kind of semblance. Without casting any aspersions on those who have been assigned the key district and postings, one would like to know whether the officers were of the same calibre as ACPs Hari Dev, A.L. Chadha, Tarlochan Singh Bhalla and Ashok Hari. These men and many others like ASI Sharma, who served at the Boat Club Chowki for over 23 years, had distinguished themselves in their jobs. Many systems in the Delhi police seem to have broken down in the past few years when the government assigned outsiders to hold the position of commissioner. In any metropolitan city, it is very important for the top cop to know the dynamics of the region and accordingly draw plans for postings and deployment. One former Commissioner had dismantled the police control room, which has always served as the eyes and ears of the top brass and is the nerve centre. In the latest instance, the government decided to replace the police commissioner on the eve of the protests, and the new commissioner, who had spent the past many years in the Intelligence Bureau, hardly got any time to understand and control the command structure. Ideally speaking, he should have led from the front and his visibility would have certainly inspired his men and officers but then it is entirely his prerogative. The use of plastic and metallic pellets has also become an area of contention. 

The matter has been officially denied in Parliament, leading to a privilege motion against a sitting minister. Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition is adamant. While the Opposition is within its rights to make any demands, justified or unjustified, in a peaceful way, there seems to be also power games which are being played within the Sangh Parivar. The students’ agitation has demonstrated that there were elements within the Sangh Parivar who were unhappy with the manner in which things have been handled. For them, it is also an opportunity to have greater say in the scheme of things. There are voices, though feeble at this point, within the Sangh, who are demanding that power should not be concentrated but should be shared. Their argument is that the party and its activists have worked for decades to ensure that the saffron brigade was in power both at the Centre and in the majority of states. 

Between us.