Mayhem exposes Rohtak administration

The situation assessment reports (Sitreps) submitted by senior civil and police officers to the Prakash Singh Committee in Haryana that probed the role of officials during the large-scale violence during the Jat agitation for reservations in February has thoroughly exposed authorities at various levels in the administrative hierarchy.

In two districts worst-affected by violence - Rohtak and Jhajjar - the sitreps pointed out that the Rohtak range Inspector General, Shrikant Jadhav, was ‘very unstable and highly emotional,’ and was confined to the canal rest house. It was further mentioned that, as Rohtak and its neighbouring districts burnt, the officer ‘had already left Rohtak for Delhi in an army helicopter.’

The report on the situation in Rohtak was submitted by Principal Secretary A K Singh and Director General of Police (DGP) BS Sandhu to the Prakash Singh Committee. Another report, submitted by Inspector General of Police (IGP) KK Rao, who was specially posted to the riot-hit Jhajjar district, stated that ‘the role of administration, especially DC Anita Yadav, was not cooperative. She did not appoint the magistrate with the police force. She never picked her phone calls’.

“The situation deteriorated so much that the agitators were threatening to target the judicial complex and Judicial Magistrates. As a precaution, we had to fit LMGs overnight on their rooftops. Even after this, the DC did not get out of her house to analyse the situation,” Rao’s report said. “She has played a very adverse role in the whole agitation. She neither acted like a leader in the situation nor provided good support to the police or the army. She remained confined to her camp office or office during the whole agitation.

Her control was also very poor over her subordinates and many times they added confusion to the situation,” the report said. In the case of Jhajjar Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Pankaj Setia, the report said, ‘he refused to sign the orders for army to take action against the agitators despite the fact that by that time several government property was put on fire by the rioters.’

Rao pointed to the unwarranted action of Rohtak range IGP Shrikant Jadhav. ‘The situation in Jhajjar was very tense. The SP was forcefully called to Rohtak by IGP/Rohtak on February 19 with 500 policemen. He returned to Jhajjar with just 60 police personnel by 2.30am the next day as IGP/Rohtak had kept the other 460 police personnel with him.

‘The number of agitators was very high - around 3,000-4,000 - and in comparison, the police force was less. But even in that scenario, I felt Jhajjar police performed exceptionally well. The SP was very courageous and a brave leader,’ Rao said in his report. The Haryana government, right from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) down to the local administration, had failed to respond to the near-anarchy engulfing the affected districts was exposed in reports submitted to the committee by other senior officers.

That the Manohar Lal Khattar government had not applied its mind thoroughly while rushing in senior officers to control the situation could be seen from the report of additional DGP PK Aggarwal, who found himself in unfamiliar territory, leave alone initiating action. An ADGP, B.K. Sinha, referring to lack of directions from the top, said, ‘the constabulary was completely unknown and unaware of what will be their response to the agitators. This dilemma led to the ineffective and insufficient use of forces on the ground and finally encouraged the agitators to create such large-scale arson at various places.’

The committee said that several Haryana officers had told that the oral instructions from Chandigarh were to avoid the use of force. The lack of coordination between various agencies became evident in the manner in which the army was requisitioned but its units could not immediately reach trouble-spots due to roadblocks put up by the Jat agitators.

The army personnel were airlifted in helicopters from Hindon air base to Rohtak. “For three days and three nights, the army conducted flag marches non-stop without sleeping at all,” the army officers pointed out to the committee. The committee also criticised the caste and community-based recruitment of constabulary in Haryana over the years, leading to the police force being divided.

By Jaideep Sarin