BHOPAL: Cops enforcing lockdown and social distancing amid rising cases of coronavirus continue to be under attack in Madhya Pradesh. Two more cases of on-duty cops being attacked have been reported from Sehore and Indore districts of the central Indian state.
In the first case, two on-duty police constables were attacked by a mob led by a serving Army Jawan in Badnagar area of Sehore district. The second case of misconduct with four police constables was reported from Chandan Nagar area – one of the COVID-19 containment zones of Indore.
Both cases were reported on Friday evening. Six persons have so far been arrested in both cases.
The first case happened in Sehore district when two cops on mobile duty to enforce lockdown and social distancing were attacked by a mob led by a serving Army Jawan Vinod Jatav and other residents of Badnagar area (47 km from Bhopal).
Not only were the two cops attacked and their uniform was torn by the mob, but the constable duo was also held captive by the mob, till more police rushed to the spot and got both the constables freed. “As of now, three persons, including the Armyman have been arrested and booked under IPC Sections for rioting, wrongful confinement and assault or criminal force to deter public servant from duty,” ASP-Sehore Sameer Yadav told The New Indian Express.
The second incident took place in Chandan Nagar area of Indore, where local residents misbehaved with on-duty cops when the four policemen questioned the residents about not wearing face masks outside the house.
In the video of the incident, which has gone viral over social media, the locals can be seen misbehaving with the cops on two motorbikes. The video also has audio of children of the area abusing the cops from their terraces.
According to DIG-Indore HN Chari Mishra, “Three men have been arrested and booked u/s 353 of IPC for assault or criminal force to deter public servant from duty.”
Importantly, on April 7, on-duty cops were attacked by local residents in the same Chandan Nagar area – one of the COVID-19 containment zones in Indore. Seven persons had been arrested in connection with that incident, out of which National Security Act (NSA) had been invoked against four accused.
Similar attacks on cops, on-duty doctors, and sanitation staff have earlier happened in Indore’s Taat Patti Bakhal area, besides other districts, including Dewas, Sheopur, and state capital Bhopal. So far NSA has been invoked against 13 persons arrested in connection with these incidents in the state.