Prohibitory orders clamped in DelhiNCR Delhi Police slow in anticipating violence, were caught unawares

DERA VERDICT Many DTC buses torched in different areas, two train bogies set afire at Anand Vihar station; 7 protesters arrested

The spiral of violence triggered minutes after Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was convicted on Friday in a rape case engulfed Delhi too, sending the police in a tizzy.

Late Friday night, Delhi Police imposed prohibitory orders under section 144 CrPC across 11 police districts. The order prevents assembly of more than four persons. Incidents of arson were reported from at least 12 places across the Capital.

The police control room continued to receive calls, reporting violence — mainly torching of DTC buses, till late Friday night.

The protesters targeting DTC buses prompted Delhi Transport Corporation to suspend bus operations to border towns of Faridabad, Bahadurgarh and Gurgaon in Haryana and Noida, Ghaziabad and Loni in Uttar Pradesh.

At Anand Vihar railway station, two bogies of Rewa Express parked in the yard were burnt . Police personnel had been deployed at the facility prevent further damage to rail property.

“There are no eyewitnesses so we can’t say for sure about who did it. We are preparing a report and also lodging a police complaint,” Narendra Kumar, senior section engineer, said.

Police arrested seven people, allegedly supporters of Ram Rahim. Delhi police spokesperson Madhur Verma said rioters across the city “could manage to burn the buses partially” but major untoward incident was reported.

“There were miscreants who came on the road and tried to torch buses. There was partial damage to the buses. Additional security personnel with senior officers are monitoring the situation. No gathering of protesters is being allowed. We have put adequate security measures in place,” said DCP Verma.

Verma also said vigil has been tightened at the borders. “Additional forces have been posted in border areas. There will be patrolling at night too. We have sought additional forces from the Centre,” he said.

Among those arrested were two men who used kerosene bombs to torch two DTC cluster buses in west Delhi’s Khayala. In Badarpur, a biker named Amit, resident of the nearby Jaitpur village, was arrested for trying to torch a bus.

At Khayala, an eyewitness Babu Khan who runs a paan shop, said, “I was in my shop when people shouted that a bus was on fire. There was a lot of smoke. We came to know that two boys had set the bus on fire. Children had seen the two setting the bus on fire and informed locals who caught them after a chase.”

Locals residents in Loni area, near Jyoti Nagar, told Hindustan Times that they saw 10-12 people, many of whom had their faces covered, attacking two DTC buses with swords and sticks. “They had petrol bombs. We have recorded their videos,” said an eye witness.

DCP Verma warned police will take stern action against those indulging in violence. “If the gathering has anything to do with the Ram Rahim verdict, we will book them for defying prohibition. Those not connected to the event will be advised to disperse,” Verma said.

There were miscreants who came on the road and tried to torch buses. There was partial damage to the buses. Section 144 CrPC has been enforced

For around two hours on Friday, Delhi Police were left puzzled and clueless on how a court’s ruling in Panchkula, at least 240 kilometres from Delhi brought violence to the capital city, forcing police to impose prohibitory orders.

From 3.26 pm, when the first incident of violence was reported, police appeared to be caught unaware and unprepared for what followed in the evening. When the Delhi Police hurriedly called a press briefing at around 6 pm and said normalcy has returned, a group of protesters in Samaypur Badli and Mehrauli were readying to torch Delhi Transport Corporation buses.

Many in the police department believe that Friday’s violence in several parts of the city is a result of the failure of the local police and the special branch, which collects intelligence about protests, which may lead to violence.

Police spokesperson Madhur Verma denied allegations that police were slow in firefighting the violence. “We had information and our officers were on the ground. In most cases, there were miscreants, mostly outsiders who wanted to create mischief. Nobody could have predicted their behaviour,” Verma said.

Verma said there was no need to impose section 144 earlier as there was no threat to the city and we did not want to create panic. “Certain inputs later in the evening made us impose the order as a precautionary measure,” said Verma. He said there were only “sporadic” incidents of arson and there was no need to panic.

Till Friday night, police officers were on the road, patrolling the entire city.