Politics | Does the Delhi violence point to a deeper malaise?

Security personnel patrol streets following clashes over the new citizenship law, at Bhagirathi area of northeast Delhi on Feb 26, 2020 (PTI)

When communal riots were a recurring sore in the walled city of Delhi in 1986-87, then senior Delhi Police officers led by Ved Marwah had worked on a blue print. With the motto that prevention is better than cure, they came up with inter-community citizen ‘mohalla committees’ for ensuring a year-round amity and vigilance against mischief makers.

These committees, as the first sentry to stem trouble, stood the test of time and enabled better policing of narrow bylanes of the old city through several political upheavals. Since then, the walled city (where Hindus and Muslims have always lived cheek by jowl) has largely remained immune to several instances of provocation in 1992 and even in 2019 when a petty fight over parking flared up.

However, the riots on the streets of North East Delhi over the last three days have shaken us, raising the question as to whether a deeper malaise has remained unaddressed — despite the lessons learnt in the walled city?

On the face of it, the riots could be attributed to the total collapse of proper policing, lack of intelligence on local ferment and even reckless and irresponsible posturing by some politicians. They could also be reflection of an angst over a rather directionless agitation that questions the validity of a parliamentary law, which is now before the Supreme Court for a final word on its constitutional congruity.

Sadly, once it was a model force for the rest of the country, but today the Delhi Police has seen its image take a severe beating, especially over the last few months. Even its veterans have raised questions as to what happened to its leadership.

The preliminary reports of the latest round of rioting in Delhi have pointed to a free-for-all, with no policemen in sight or elders in the both communities trying to act as a bulwark against senseless violence. Of course, there are individual stories of some Hindus trying to save their Muslim brethren and vice versa. Even waving of the national flag and copies of the Constitution, which is a familiar sight in the two month-long sit-in at the Shaheen Bagh and 18 other places across Delhi against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) were conspicuous by their absence.

Instead, reports of armed men of being roped in from neighbouring Uttar Pradesh for directing the mayhem have added to the lethal matrix. A photograph of one of them pointing a pistol at a policeman went viral on the social media. It also showed a co-relation with the number of people succumbing to death or admitted in nearby hospitals due to gunshot wounds. Never has Delhi seen so many people being shot at during a riot.

Local politicians, including Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his ministers and newly-elected MLAs, chose Gandhiji’s samadhi (Rajghat) to make their appeal for peace — rather than visit the trouble spots. The debate about the lack of police powers with the city government made a comeback. With the entire responsibility of law and public order in the capital resting in the hands of the Union home ministry, questions began to be asked about the efficacy of such an arrangement.

Kejriwal, who attended a high-level meet chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, initially expressed confidence in the Centre’s ability to rein in matters with the help of Delhi Police. However, in less than 24 hours, he called for the affected parts to be handed over to the army as he thought the police could not do the job.

Surely the local government could do more than that to restore normalcy, though the police response invariably reflects the bias of the ruling party — and this is due to much-delayed institutional reforms.

Yes, the Union home ministry could have done more in letting the Delhi Police act faster. The perception that for over 72 hours the Delhi Police top brass could not act or watched helplessly when hundreds clashed, torching homes, shops, and vehicles won’t help the credentials of Shah as a tough handler of internal security.

Between the conspiracy theories that see a link between US President Donald Trump’s visit and the scaled up anti-CAA protests, and the resultant violence, the role of politicians across the spectrum and, also of those who worked behind the protests in Shaheen Bagh and other places is under cloud. India’s tryst with destiny is back on the scanner for yet another time?

Shekhar Iyer is former senior associate editor of Hindustan Times and political editor of Deccan Herald. Views are personal.