Citizenship Act protests: How Mangaluru Police misjudged crowd, anger and everything
MANGALURU: A walk on the roads of Bandar area in Mangaluru where police firing claimed two lives, reveals the dreaded situation. It has been over three days after the deadly incident, but still the residents here do not want to venture out. The burnt vehicle parts, tyres, stones and shattered glasses lay where the shooting took place.
As per the police version, the 'mob' tried to torch Mangaluru North police station in an attempt to take away the arms and then firing had to be ordered. The police also said that there was a congregation of over 6-7,000 people but the Muslim organisations in Mangaluru put the count less than 1,000 people in different groups.
It's learnt that while talking to the family members of the victim, and leaders from Muslim Community on Saturday in Mangaluru, Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa clarified that he did not order for shooting and lathi charge. Yediyurappa gave an example of protests in Bengaluru and how they were handled.
The Chief Minister's clarification to the family also raised questions on Police Commissioner of Mangaluru PS Harsha, who has been 'under fire' ever since the police fired at protesters on December 17. Though several community leaders are quiet about the firing incident, there has been demand brewing within the community asking for judicial inquiry on police commissioner for firing.
Chief Minister clarification came after he held meeting with senior officials from police and administration at the Mangaluru airport upon his arrival. It's said that the Commissioner of Police PS Harsha was not there in the meeting initially and joined the CM later at the Circuit House. This raised suspicion that the CM may take some kind of action on the police chief.
A senior police official, however, tried to play down the incident. He said that the Commissioner was busy arranging the Muslim delegation which was supposed to be with the CM in Circuit house and in order to coordinate, the Commissioner had to be away from the meeting. Later at the Circuit House, it was the top cop who briefed the CM and other officials about the incident.
A section of Muslim leaders are now demanding actions against the top cop and an inspector who is allegedly seen asking policemen about the firing death toll in a video. The leaders alleged that the police misjudged the crowd's mentality and behaved as if it was a communal rift. The police started firing on the crowd at the time when senior leaders from the community were trying to pacify the crowd, upon instructions from the Commissioner himself.
"The police must have understood the confusion and anger that the community was going through," said a senior Muslim leader.
"Post Ayodhya verdict and recent enacting of Babri mosque demolition in a school had made anger brewing among a section of people in the community. Muslims in Mangaluru have been active in organising rallies and protests and we went through legal way asking permissions. When the permission was denied we restrained from the protest," recalled the leader.
Further, he also said that on December 17 despite have curfew many organisations across the state came on the roads protesting.
"This made a small numbers of youth go on protest. When they were sent back by police without a dialogue they came with more numbers. The second time they gathered police started wielding lathis without any provocation. Angered by this more people started gathering and started throwing stones and whatever they got in their hands. This was the time when Commissioner asked the Muslim leaders to intervene. Even when we were trying calm down the mob along with the Commissioner the firing started. So who ordered firing remains as a big question," he added.
DYFI Karnataka State President Muneer Katipalla said that the police version over firing has a lot of flaws and needs to be inquired.
"There are extremist elements on both the sides. But what provoked police to fire without warning need to be investigated. There were not more than 1,000 people against the claims of police who are saying there were 7,000 people. The police could have handled the situation in a better way," he felt.