Delhi Underground

Friend and foe

Had Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar walked a few metres away from the police headquarters on Saturday,where protests against the rape of a five-year-old were on in full swing,he would have been pleasantly surprise. The same Aam Aadmi Party workers,who protested aggressively and hurled abuses at the cops,were later seen enjoying a meal at a dhaba with constables. The two groups were reportedly discussing problems of the country.

No will

The Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) claims to be better than the other government-appointed commissions. In the aftermath of the rape of the five-year-old in East Delhi,Chairperson Arun Mathur said the DCPCR was not as toothless as it seemed,“since it often pointed out the shortcomings of the government and helped to sensitise people”. However,the Commission’s commitment towards the protection of children and women in the city could best be gauged from the fact that a Chief Secretary-headed committee on child rights,which is supposed to take decisions on such matters,hasn’t met in the last one and half years.

New avatar

With songs,spoofs,skits and speeches,the protests against Delhi University’s four-year undergraduate programme will take on a new form in the next few days. Opposing the implementation of the new course at the Arts Faculty on Tuesday,the joint action body will host an event — Bakwas-laureate — a spoof on the Baccalaureate degrees that will be awarded in the four-year course.

Speak carefully

BJP leaders in the Assembly are reportedly observing restraint in using the reference of Bengali Market. The reason: BJP Delhi Chief Vijay Goel has an office in the market. Recently,a senior party leader told another one that she had some work at Bengali Market and therefore had come to civic centre. Soon, she was found explaining that she had to purchase some things from the market and had not gone to the party chief’s office.

Expert advice

If a dangerously sick chicken was spreading its diseases,such as bird flu,in your neighbourhood,who should you call for help? According to Agricultural Minister Sharad Pawar,ideally,it shouldn’t be the government. At a conference on animal management during disasters held last week,Pawar said that community-based disaster preparedness was the key to success in such cases. “Initiation of public-private partnership in livestock emergency management,especially in the field of medicines and vaccines production will go a long way in combating animal disease emergencies,” he said. And having handled major disasters like the Killari earthquake and the severe drought in Maharshtra,Pawar’s advice does come with experience. Now,it is just a question of what will happen.

Always alert

For reasons unknown,a senior police officer has been on public’s target list of late. Recently,a media person had gone to his office for a casual meeting. During the visit,the DCP got a call regarding a VVIP being heckled by the crowd. Oblivious to the reporter filming the conversation,the DCP spoke for a good 20 minutes. A few hours later,the video was posted on YouTube. Now,the officer avoids meeting media persons. If at all he does,they are frisked before being given entry into his office.

True picture

With the Noida police launching video conferencing in jails across the district,police constables are breathing a sigh of relief. A constable said,“Our role had been reduced to escorting the accused to jail. Because we had grown familiar with them,sometimes we had tea and biscuits with them. This would be caught on camera by local TV channels and we would face the fear of suspension. Now thankfully,that won’t happen.”

Cops anonymous

After a police officer was suspended for slapping a woman protester,who had tried to snatch away his nameplate during the anti-rape agitation on Friday,policemen deployed to control the protests were not wearing nameplates. Cops deployed outside the police headquarters said they did not wish to “risk” suspensions in case the protesters tried to snatch their nameplates and they ended up reacting inappropriately.

Judgespeak

During the cross-examination of a prosecution witness in the December 16 gangrape case,the policeman told the court that when he went to collect evidence and asked people at the spot to become part of investigation,they refused. Directing his stenographer to “cut,copy,paste” the sentence from previously recorded statements of other police witnesses,the judge said,“Since Independence,(such) statements have remained unchanged. Even today,when accused are taken to make disclosures,the document reads ‘bakhushi chala (accused walked happily),as if the accused is happy to disclose and go along with police for recovering evidence.” The judge said,“Such statements are still the same,despite all these years,” adding that,“Beech beech mein aisi baatein bhi honi chahiye,warna trial bada neeras ho jata hai. (Once in a while things like this should also happen otherwise trials get very dry).”