A parliamentary panel on Home Affairs questioned the Delhi Police Commissioner over the use of force against students and suggested that police should have acted in a mature manner and opened a dialogue with them.
The panel also raised the issue of police frequently imposing Section 144 in parts of Delhi which causes inconvenience to many.
Top officials of the Union Home Ministry and Delhi Police chief Amulya Patnaik appeared on Monday before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs chaired by senior Congress leader Anand Sharma to discuss rising crimes in Delhi and National Capital Region (NCR).
Mr. Patnaik was also asked about the recent sit-in by Delhi police officials outside police headquarters. “The Commissioner of Police was told that if the police sits on a dharna , then questions are raised on his leadership,” a member of the committee said.
Without mentioning the recent incidents of violence at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and Jamia Millia Islamia, members of the panel questioned the way in which police handled the protests.
Delhi police’s actions came under scanner following the violence at Jamia University in December which left many students injured.
There were also allegations that the police remained standing at the gates of JNU campus while a mob attacked students and faculty members on January 5.
Besides Delhi Police Commissioner, DGP Haryana Manoj Yadav and senior officials of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan police also briefed the panel on the issue of crimes in NCR coming under their jurisdiction.
As per the Rajya Sabha bulletin, the agenda of the meeting was, “To have a briefing by the Home Secretary along with Delhi Police and other stakeholders and organizations on the 'Rising Crime in Delhi and National Capital Region’.”
