03-18-2006, 12:17 AM
India might have won her freedom over 50 years ago, but we are still ruled by police following british imperial rules. Time after time, we come across instances where the police , either in concert with the politicians or on their own have simply refused to treat indian citizens with respect.
A suspect in police custody does not have any rights and third degree interrogation techniques, that put Abu Gharib abuse to shame, have been used with impunity. Worse, the indian cinema and the TV serials seems to reinforce this image. The potrayal of police in all our movies and TVs is of a cop who beats on the suspects to get out a confession or the truth. Not only does the bad cop does that, but even the do-gooder cop also do it. The only difference being, good cop tortures a gooda (against whom there is absolutely no evidence) and gets him to fess-up.
This bad behaviour of the cops can be seen in real life too. Worse, nothing happens to these bad cops. In this latest instance, the cops in navi mumbai fired at rioters and killed 3 people. Why did they not use teargas or lathicharge? Was the crowd that violent? In that case how come the only deaths have been as a result of police firing?
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Kadam blames police inaction for Navi Mumbai riots  Â
Mumbai, Mar 17: Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Asembly Ramdas Kadam today launched a scathing attack on the "initial inaction" of the police during the group clashes in Navi Mumbai, that killed three persons, two in police firing, and injured 76 yesterday.
"The way police acted yesterday to control the mobs at Ghansoli in Navi Mumbai makes me wonder if the Home Minister had given orders to the police to kill people on the spot," Kadam said during a discussion on an adjournment motion on the Navi Mumbai riots.
Kadam said he visited the spot after the group clashes between Ghansoli villagers and Mathadi workers. "I can say from what I gathered that had the local police inspector Pathan promptly acted to diffuse tension after the eve-teasing incident, the deaths of three people in police firing later could have been averted," he said.
Kadam alleged that Pathan opened fire without following due procedures like preceding it with a lathi-charge and also violated the norm which stipulate firing below the waist. "He did not fire in the air but aimed directly at the chest," Kadam said.
He demanded that Pathan be suspended immediately and a murder case be registered against him.
Kadam said he had visited "eight to nine people injured in the firing" admitted to local hospitals. "I found out that except for one person, all others had bullet injuries above the waist", he said.
Of the 76 injured, 22 were policemen, Kadam said. The stone-pelting was so intense that even a DCP (Amar Jadhav) sustained serious injuries although he was wearing a helmet, he said.
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A suspect in police custody does not have any rights and third degree interrogation techniques, that put Abu Gharib abuse to shame, have been used with impunity. Worse, the indian cinema and the TV serials seems to reinforce this image. The potrayal of police in all our movies and TVs is of a cop who beats on the suspects to get out a confession or the truth. Not only does the bad cop does that, but even the do-gooder cop also do it. The only difference being, good cop tortures a gooda (against whom there is absolutely no evidence) and gets him to fess-up.
This bad behaviour of the cops can be seen in real life too. Worse, nothing happens to these bad cops. In this latest instance, the cops in navi mumbai fired at rioters and killed 3 people. Why did they not use teargas or lathicharge? Was the crowd that violent? In that case how come the only deaths have been as a result of police firing?
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Kadam blames police inaction for Navi Mumbai riots  Â
Mumbai, Mar 17: Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Asembly Ramdas Kadam today launched a scathing attack on the "initial inaction" of the police during the group clashes in Navi Mumbai, that killed three persons, two in police firing, and injured 76 yesterday.
"The way police acted yesterday to control the mobs at Ghansoli in Navi Mumbai makes me wonder if the Home Minister had given orders to the police to kill people on the spot," Kadam said during a discussion on an adjournment motion on the Navi Mumbai riots.
Kadam said he visited the spot after the group clashes between Ghansoli villagers and Mathadi workers. "I can say from what I gathered that had the local police inspector Pathan promptly acted to diffuse tension after the eve-teasing incident, the deaths of three people in police firing later could have been averted," he said.
Kadam alleged that Pathan opened fire without following due procedures like preceding it with a lathi-charge and also violated the norm which stipulate firing below the waist. "He did not fire in the air but aimed directly at the chest," Kadam said.
He demanded that Pathan be suspended immediately and a murder case be registered against him.
Kadam said he had visited "eight to nine people injured in the firing" admitted to local hospitals. "I found out that except for one person, all others had bullet injuries above the waist", he said.
Of the 76 injured, 22 were policemen, Kadam said. The stone-pelting was so intense that even a DCP (Amar Jadhav) sustained serious injuries although he was wearing a helmet, he said.
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