Give us a free hand to arrest culprits, police tell Modi

Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Friday evening held a high-level meeting with senior Ministers, MLAs and top police brass to take stock of the situation in the city. This was the first such meeting held after the February 27 attack on Sabarmati Express and its barbaric aftermath in the city.

The meeting, which started at around 6 pm, continued till late. Even after all the others had left, Commissioner of Police P C Pande, Additional Commissioner (Sector-I) Shivanand Jha and Joint Commissioner (Sector-II) M K Tandon remained closeted with the Chief Minister at Circuit House Annexe.

An official release issued on Friday night said Modi had convened the meeting to find a way to stop tension from mounting and bring back peace to riot-affected city.

The meeting turned stormy when a top police official reportedly told Modi that most of the instances of violence were taking place because of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal (BD) activists and leaders, who were instigating the riots. ‘‘Since the last 23 days, they have been doing so. It is high time that we stop them to restore peace in the city. This is not only taking a toll on the morale of cops but also giving a wrong idea about the peace-loving Amdavadis,’’ then official is reported to have said.

He found support from two other senior officers, who also complained. ‘‘We should be given a free hand to arrest the accused VHP and BD activists,’’ a officer is said to have told Modi.

Another senior police officer said this was no time to bring political or any other vested interests into play. ‘‘We should now go above all these matters and take positive steps to ensure peace and harmony among residents,’’ he said.

The situation has been worsening day by day and if strict action is not taken now, things will go out of hand, complained another officer. ‘‘If the interest of minority community cannot be protected now, they will have no confidence on the administration,’’ he said.

Minister of State for Home Gordhan Zadaphia, Health Minister Ashok Bhatt, Revenue Minister Haren Pandya, MLAs Mayaben Kodnani, Amit Shah and Amrish Patel were among those who attended the meeting. DGP K Chakrovorthy, Chief Secretary G Subbarao and Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Ashok Narayan were also present at the meet.

Republished from Indian Express