In the past couple of days, various incidents of police beating up civilians amid the lockdown had been brought to notice. State Police chief Subodh Jaiswal on Friday ordered that all police commissioners and superintendents in all the districts should refrain from using force on civilians seen on roads during the lockdown.
Jaiswal stated that the people might be on the roads to buy essential items for their families or can also be in some emergency. The order by the state police chief is said to come after various videos of police brutality went viral on social media where the policemen were seen hitting pedestrians and bikers on the roads.
Complaints of the violence by police along with the videos had reached CMO. The people said that despite repeatedly explaining that they were out to buy essentials, they were beaten up. Alongside, some of the employees working in essentials services also complained that they faced the same issues while commuting.
It is believed that CM Uddhav Thackeray then called up the DGP and expressed his disappointment towards the way the situation was handled. The CM stressed on restraining force on civilians and a message was sent out to the police chief to be considerate and give the people benefit of the doubts in case they are seen on the streets. He had previously asked the cops to be sympathetic towards the people on Wednesday.
Jaiswal said that he has now directed all the police officials to not use unnecessary force on civilians. He added that while policemen are doing a commendable job by patrolling the streets amid the lockdown, some are not adhering to the prohibitory orders. Jaiswal assured that necessary action will be taken against them.
While the police have been given the necessary orders to be sympathetic and provide unhindered passage to vehicles carrying essentials, it is vital for the people as well to adhere to the 21-day lockdown.
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