Delhi Police-lawyers clash: Cops call off day-long protest; senior officials tell agitators probe underway over incidents of violence

Delhi Police personnel, who had been on protest through the day on Tuesday, called off their agitation in the evening hours and agreed to rejoin duty. The police personnel launched the protest to seek stern action on repeated violence against them by lawyers. According to News18, the protesters were given an assurance that a probe is being carried out over the incidents of violence against their colleagues. The demands of the protesters were that the licences of lawyers who assaulted their colleagues be revoked and the transfer of the officers involved in the Tis Hazari clash last week rescinded. “We also want a police association, providing of better treatment to injured policemen and reinstating of suspended police personnel. Strict action should be taken against advocates,” said one of the protesters, reading out the list of demands. [caption id=“attachment_7606501” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Police personnel gather outside the Delhi Police headquarters to protest against the repeated incidents of alleged violence against them by lawyers including the Tis Hazari Court clashes, in New Delhi. PTI[/caption] Tuesday’s unprecedented protests were triggered by two attacks on their colleagues, one on Monday when a policeman was beaten up outside the Saket district court, and another on Saturday after a parking dispute between an on-duty policeman and a lawyer which led to at least 20 security personnel and several advocates being injured. Holding placards that read “We are human in police uniforms” and “Protectors Need Protection”, the protesting police gathered outside the police headquarters at ITO and urged their seniors to stand with them to save the honour of the uniform. Family of the policemen were also joined the protesting police later in the day. Delhi Police Commissioner Amulya Patnaik urged the protesting police to return to work and said they should behave like a “disciplined force”. “The government and the people expect us to uphold the law, it is our big responsibility. I urge you to resume duty,” Patnaik told the police, adding that their concerns will be addressed. Centre closely monitoring situation The Centre has been closely monitoring the situation in Delhi, a top home ministry official said. The Union home ministry also received a report from the Delhi Police on Saturday’s clash between lawyers and police at the Tis Hazari court complex. “We are closely monitoring the situation in Delhi. A judicial inquiry has been ordered. Let us wait for the outcome of the inquiry,” the official said. The inquiry was ordered by the Delhi High Court on Sunday and the report has to be submitted within six weeks. The report of Delhi Police was submitted incorporating the details of the Tis Hazari court incident. It is a report in which Delhi Police has given details of the circumstances leading to Saturday’s incident and the action taken after it, a home ministry official said. However, the report does not cover what happened after Saturday, including an incident on Monday in which a group of lawyers assaulted a policeman outside the Saket court, he added. With inputs from PTI