Anti-socials joined stir as ‘helpers’: Cops

Additional Commissioner (Headquarters) & IG S N Seshasai, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Ambattur, R Sudhakar and Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mylapore, V Balakrishnan, in a press meet also claimed that they had enough evidence to believe that members of seven extremist groups were supplying food, water and refreshments to the protesters. They were carrying out the service with a plan to disrupt the Republic Day parade. 

“They supplied food, water to the protesters and arranged rooms in mansions and nearby areas. These people were in no way associated with the protests,” Additional commissioner Seshasai said. DC Balakrishnan said that while the police had been in talks with the protesters from Jan 21, when the Ordinance came through, urging the protesters to vacate the beach, “The squatters on the Marina kept asking for little more time. We obliged and waited.”

He said that they got inputs about anti-social elements steering the protest in a different direction with anti-national slogans and seditious speeches.  According to them, a total of 102 policemen were injured and 31 vehicles belong to police, private and those involved in court cases were set on fire. The injured policemen included from those in lower ranks to that of Additional Commissioner, they added.  

Seshasai said, “We have been cooperating with the student community right from the beginning. They did not create any problem during the first six days of the protest. They even helped us regulate traffic near the beach. In fact, when the violence broke out, the students shared videos of miscreants who resorted to violence.”

DMK working president M K Stalin has written to President Pranab Mukherjee asking him to direct Tamil Nadu governor Vidyasagar Rao to order an inquiry by a sitting High Court judge in to the excesses by the city police against the peaceful protesters in the city on January 23.

The DMK has also sent with the letter a CD comprising 31 video footages showing vandalism and violence by city police against the protesters. Seeking his immediate intervention, Stalin, in the letter, a copy of which was circulated to the media, also urged the President to establish the rule of law by taking immediate action against the anti-democratic AIADMK regime, which, he claimed, had unleashed intolerable violence against innocent people of Chennai through the city police. 

The Leader of Opposition also drew the President’s attention to the absence of a senior officer when the personnel on field created an ‘extreme situation’ by wielding their baton against people and destroying private property. 

Reiterating his earlier plea to the Governor that the city police commissioner and a few other officials be transferred out of the city to ensure a fair probe in to the matter, Stalin said the CoP and other officers failed to stop their personnel on ground, who did not even spare women fleeing from the Marina.

After drawing severe criticism on social media for their alleged excess on jallikattu protesters, video grabs of which were making rounds on Facebook, YouTube, etc., the city police are now circulating their side of the story on social media with photos and footage of miscreants attacking them.

One of the earliest posts on Wednesday, said, “The city police worked tirelessly for the last several days in view of the largescale congregation of protesters in Chennai. While the students carried on with the agitation in a peaceful and democratic manner and cooperated with the police at every stage, anti-social elements and groups in a well-planned and coordinated fashion, fought as mobs violently against the police officers on duty.” 

The post that was accompanied with the photograph of city commissioner S George said, “Despite the best efforts by police to maintain public order in the city, it is disturbing to see that certain motivated groups spreading rumours and portraying the department in bad light. This is affecting the morale of the force.”  The post concluded with, “The city police will also not spare any effort in identifying members of the force, who have exhibited any misbehaviour or indulged in any unruly act.” 

The post was followed by several videos of mobs attacking police vehicles in several parts of the city, including a bleeding constable narrating his ordeal. Experts say that though it will help them to reach the masses, the police must make their presence more consistent. Balaji Vijayaraghavan, a social media expert, said, “This will reduce the emanation of rumours, but also will connect the citizens with the police.”