Parkash Singh: Hry govt failed dera test due to indecision

CHANDIGARH: Political procrastination, bad planning and lack of foresight were the reasons behind the Haryana government’s failure to handle the agitating crowds once again, Parkash Singh, former Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, who is considered architect of police reforms, has said.

Speaking to Hindustan Times, the police officer who had also submitted a voluminous report regarding the police role in tackling the February 2016 Jat agitation in Haryana, slammed the Manohar Lal Khattar-led BJP government for making a series of missteps in the run-up to August 25 when the Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was convicted in a rape case by the CBI court in Panchkula.

“The way the government handled the situation shows failure at all levels,” Singh, who is based in Noida, said over phone.

“Political procrastination, no clear instructions from the top political masters led to this yet another fiasco,” he said.

Stating that he was also “disappointed at the bureaucratic response”, the former top cop said it was disappointing that politicians, police officers and bureaucrats did not come forward to display leadership.

“There was no positive contribution of the bureaucracy in handling the crisis,” he said.

“One didn’t see any leadership in the state during the four days in the run-up to Friday. And the chief minister is what he is…”

DELIBERATE OMISSION Describing the move of the Haryana authorities in not enforcing the prohibitory orders in Panchkula as “deliberate”, the former IPS officer said the government should not have allowed people in such a large number to enter Panchkula.

As the administration was late in imposing Section 144 CrPC and when it was imposed on August 23, the order was not only ambiguous but also only against carrying of weapons. There was no mention of limiting a gathering to just five persons. The authorities enforced the relevant section only after a rap from the high court.

He said: “They say it was a clerical mistake. I am inclined to assume that it was a deliberate omission. It was a half- hearted prohibitory order imposed by the Panchkula. I refuse to believe that it was a clerical mistake.”

Stating that lack of restrictions on the movement of people who were permitted to enter Panchkula without any hindrance was a “huge miscalculation,” he said it was a huge mistake that turned out to be very costly in view of the number of people killed. “The toll is very huge,” he said.