Rioting police personnel identified

In the wake of various political parties demanding action against police personnel who allegedly indulged in violence in the aftermath of the jallikattu agitation, the city police are claiming to have identified two police personnel who were caught on camera setting fire to vehicles last Monday.

The city witnessed large-scale violence after the jallikattu agitation was brought to an abrupt end last Monday. Along with rioters, some police personnel allegedly indulged in excesses such as setting fire to autos, bikes and hurling stones at the public. The videos purporting to show police personnel setting fire to vehicles were not only telecast but also widely shared on social media.

Though the city police downplayed the issue, Commissioner of Police S. George ordered an inquiry by the Cyber Cell Wing of Central Crime Branch to identify the personnel in question, against whom he promised to take strict action. Initially, even Mr. George had claimed that the videos had been morphed.

On Monday, a top police official, speaking to

The Hindu , said, “We have identified two police personnelwho indulged in excesses. Further inquiries are on. We may be in a position to name them shortly. Definitely, action will be taken.”

A concurrent investigation is on to identify the individuals who brought posters of Al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden and anti-India posters to the agitation.

Last Saturday, while defending the police in their handling of the agitation and the subsequent violence, Additional Commissioners of Police K. Shankar and S. N. Seshasai said, “The peaceful movement started by students and youngsters was hijacked by people carrying pictures of Osama bin Laden, a truncated map of India and other pictures with anti-India ideologies. These people infiltrated the agitation to create anarchy and prevent a peaceful end to the agitation. They decided to disrupt the Republic Day celebration.”

Showing video evidence to justify their actions, the police officers said, “When anti-socials/anti-nationals infiltrate the agitating crowd, we have to enforce the law. There was no high-handedness by the police. They exercised maximum restraint.”

Underscoring the scale of the violence, the Additional Commissioners showed footage of a few persons, including schoolchildren, mixing chilly powder with water and packing the solution into polythene bags, with the intention of hurling them at the police.