Hyderabad, March 31: It was noticed in Old City and Musheerabad area that the police officials had failed to respond the emerging situations, especially the communal violence which the State capital has been witnessing for the last three days.
The inexplicable part of Tuesday developments is that despite more than 6,000 armed personnel being kept at the disposal of the city police, violence broke out in newer areas in Secunderabad side in addition to Begum Bazar, after a Bajrang Dal rally turned violent escalating the tension all over the city.
By any stretch of imagination, trouble was anticipated as the huge procession started at Gowliguda around 11 a.m. The belligerence of the processionists was palpable but the policemen accompanying the rally could not take timely decision on quantum of force to prevent situation slipping out of control. The clever strategy of the rallyists to break themselves into groups also caught the police unawares, officials who monitored the situation say.
The confusion of the policeman is due to several factors. The heavy political interference in posting of officers right from Sub-Inspector to Assistant Commissioner of Police levels led to a situation, where officers were posted in key positions without considering their decision-making capabilities. As a result at the time of a dangerous situation developing, most of the officers left the crucial decision on the force to be used to their superiors and waited for instructions.
The other indirect factor that seemed to have strengthened the inertia is the belief that neither the government nor the senior officers would support if a decision is taken based on the emerging situation. Several instances of officers being suspended or transferred at the behest of politicians on account of tough stand taken by the former had left an indelible mark on the collective psyche of policeman in Hyderabad.
“Why invite trouble by acting. Let the senior officers take the initiative,” is the unannounced refrain among officers at the cutting-edge level. Some cite the example of ‘harassment’ meted out to a police officer who ordered firing to quell riotous mobs killing nine persons after the Mecca Masjid blast incident in this regard. “There is a sense of fear among the police officers in city,” an officer conceded.
The other aspect, police officers admit, is the improper briefing given to the men. The forces brought from other districts are at a loss to understand how to react to emerging situations, but were posted at different places.
What appeared to have aggravated is the peculiar situation where people from both the communities showing unbridled aggression, which led to imposition of curfew in the State capital after a gap of nearly seven years.
–Agencies