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Lucknow, May 22: In the violence that had gripped many states in North India in February this year, when the Jat community was agitating for reservation in education and government jobs, there were a lot of people killed. Months on, very few culprits have been brought to books for the massive destruction and murders and rapes that took place during the time period. Now, former Uttar Pradesh DGP has come forward with an account of how he was pressured to let off influential people and government servants and police officers too, who were involved in the violence.
In an interview with the Times of India, Prakash Singh revealed how there was a lot of pressure on him to be lenient with bureaucrats and police officers, while investigating acts of omission and commissions, committed by them. Singh further said that he ignored the pressures and ultimately indicted 80 officers for aiding and abetting the rioters directly or indirectly. Describing one particular case, he said, “There were two deputy SPs who were part of the entire carnage. The violence was taking place with their connivance.” ALSO READ: Jat stir: Departmental action recommended against 15 cops
He said that in a lot of cases, the police didn’t just look the other way, they took part in what could only be called, “criminal and deliberate negligence.” Speaking on how only junior officers have been charged for the wrongdoings, Singh said that he was disappointed that the Haryana government chose not to release the probe report in public. ” Once it is in the public domain, the speculative reporting and allegations would stop”, he said. Elaborating on the pressures he faced, Singh said, “There were some very high level approaches to me saying ‘saab, isko chhod dijiye, usko haath mat lagaiye’, ‘isko adverse comment mat dijiyega’.”
But he said, he never gave in to the pressures- “I listened to everyone, but the matter ended there. I have resisted all pressures.” Till now, 59 police and 21 civil officers have been indicted, based on Singh’s probe report. Speaking about the action that has been taken till now, Singh said, “Five IAS officers and five IPS officers have been indicted. Some have minor infractions and can get away with a warning. But there are adverse comments about five officers each of both services.” You can read the whole interview here.
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