Stay alert against snatchings

As Chennai is earning notoriety for the increasing number of chain and mobile phone snatchings, even a routine walk on the road has come to become a nightmare – whether it is day or night. Though a petty crime as per the law, these attacks – as revealed by the CCTV footages – are often shocking creating constant fear and paranoia in the minds of the common public.

The martial art trainers DT Next spoke to say simple defensive skills can help face such situations and escape unhurt, besides even retaining the valuables.

T Saravanan, a city-based Taekwondo expert, says the basic and but effective response is rather simple: sit down. “Chain snatchers strike when the victims expect it the least. Caught unawares, victims tend to run, which only makes it easier for the criminals. Instead, if they sit down the very moment they realise someone is touching them from behind, the snatcher will lose balance and fall. Anybody, be it men, women or elderly persons, can make use of this technique to prevent robbery. In some cases, even if the property is lost, the victims can at least escape unhurt,” he says.

According to him, though defending oneself is a reflex action that is ingrained in everyone’s mind, training in any form of martial arts would equip them to do it under various circumstances. “There is something called muscle memory which you gain by practice. It will help you gain more confidence and shed fear. I would suggest people to learn martial arts as a family, instead of discouraging women from learning to defend themselves in adverse situations,” he adds.

Saravanan says he is often confronted with similar queries about protecting oneself from the snatchers. His advice to them, he says, is not to let the criminals see the jewellery. “Exhibiting jewellery in the open is like extending an open invitation to criminals. So it is up to us to shiel ourselves from becoming victims of robbery.” Power Pandi, a Silambam trainer in the city, says an increased number of women are taking to martial arts after the murder of the woman techie, Swathi, in 2016. “Women have been conditioned to cover their face or bend their knees to prepare themselves in the event of an attack, while men might try to fight the attackers without realising the dangers involved. Both are wrong. The important factor in any martial art is to decide, at the spur of the moment, how to respond and what needs to be done. Men or women equipped with necessary skills will be able to manage such situations easily,” says Power Pandi, who has been currently teaching 50 women in Silambam.

A woman inspector says they have been regularly conducting awareness campaigns among local residents in their jurisdiction on various topics including staying safe from snatchers. “We ask both men and women not to lose themselves in phones while walking on the road and to avoid dark stretches. Chain snatchers target the gullible; so we ask the people to always be conscious whether they are being followed. The thought itself will make one mentally prepared to deal with untoward situations.” Reforms remain on paper

However, she says the lack of implementation of guidelines to deal with juvenile offenders has made them offenders. “If a juvenile is detained, he or she should be kept in the observation home till they turn 18 years in order to keep a close watch on them. But they are let off within a month or two, and return to the street to do the same offence. Even though they should be given counselling apart from regular education, it remains only on paper,” she says.

A senior officer, however, claims that snatching incidents have come down in the city in the last few years. The difference now is that the people get to see the brazen and often shocking manner in which these attacks happen thanks to the CCTV footages flashed on news channels, he says.

“Earlier, chain snatching incidents were tougher to crack, as there would be no evidence other than what the victim would recount. Many incidents would even go unreported to higher officials. But now, with the help of CCTV footages, suspects are identified and traced easily. When the Delhi gang of snatchers were arrested last year, the CCTV grabs were sourced not from the sites of occurrences but far off places like T Nagar,” he says.

The officer blames the prevalence of such crimes to the mentality of the offenders that the crime is easy, and that they can go scot-free. “When it comes to snatchers, there are a variety of offenders from first-timers to occasional snatchers to regular snatchers. The regular snatchers would be addicted to liquor or drugs and target gullible persons often.” 

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