As per reports, on Friday the Delhi High Court pulled up the Delhi Police for asking its personnel to exercise “due care and precaution” while making arrests in connection with communal violence in the Capital so as to avoid “Hindu resentment” in February.
The high court was hearing a petition filed by Sahil Parvez and Mohd Saeed Salmani who sought quashing of 8th July order issued by the Special Commissioner of Delhi Police (Crime and Economic Offences Wing). According to the sources, Parvez’s father was allegedly shot dead by communal rioters near his home, while Salmani’s elderly mother was allegedly lynched in her house by rioters.
As per reports, the Special Commissioner of Police (Crime) Praveer Ranjan with an aim of guiding the senior officers heading the investigation teams, has written an order claiming that the arrests of “some Hindu youth” had led to a “degree of resentment among the Hindu community”, which Ranjan said was cause for the police to take “due care and precaution” in how it proceeds.
During the video conferencing hearing, Justice Suresh Kumar Kait of the Delhi High Court asked Praveer Ranjan, the Special Commissioner of Delhi Police (Crime and Economic Offences Wing) while terming the direction as ‘mischievous’ has queried as to what was the need to issue such a letter on 8th July to his subordinate officials. The court further questioned if the police issues such orders in other cases too.
The petitioners alleged that the senior officer’s order to the chiefs of teams probing the riot matters was sending a wrong message. While advocate Amit Mahajan, representing the Delhi Police, contended that the petition was highly mischievous, the judge shot back stating that this letter (of special CP) is also mischievous. However, Mahajan argued that this is a normal practice adopted by them to sensitize the officials to exercise due care and precaution.
“An input was received by the agency and whenever such input is received, the police sensitize our officers so that they shall exercise due care and precaution during the investigation, he said, adding that besides the riots matter, they have passed several such orders in other cases in the past,” stated advocate Mahajan.
Nonetheless, at the end of the hearing, the Court directed the Special Commissioner to place within two days five such orders or letters, in a sealed cover, which he or his predecessor has issued on receiving a complaint or representation and listed the matter for further hearing on August 7.
