The anti-rape protests in Delhi, which have been sustained by students for eight days now, took a hit on Tuesday following the death of police constable Subhash Tomar and a controversial letter written by Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit.
Bus stops and metro stations in central Delhi remained cordoned off for the third consecutive day, which affected not just commuters but also prevented demonstrators from reaching Jantar Mantar — the protest site. As a result, fewer people assembled for the protest, which was triggered by the gang-rape of a 23-year-old paramedic on December 16.
However, towards late evening, all metro stations were reopened.
In a letter to Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, the Delhi Chief Minister has alleged that senior police officers interfered in the video recording of a statement from the rape victim. The letter was based on a complaint by Sub-Divisional Magistrate Usha Chaturvedi. Reportedly, in the complaint, Chaturvedi has said that three senior police officers prevented the recording because it differed from the police statement.
Critics say that Dikshit is using this as an opportunity to bring Delhi Police under the State Government’s purview. Currently, the police are under the control of the Home Ministry.
The death of the constable has not only given the Government, which has been claiming that the protestors were violent, a handle, it has also dealt a blow to both the protest as well as Arvind Kejriwal’s fledgling Aam Aadmi Party.
Tomar’s death has led to another political twist, with FIRs being lodged against eight people, one of whom — Chaman Kumar — is a member of the Aam Aadmi Party. Tomar was reportedly attacked by a group of protestors on Sunday during pitched battles between demonstrators and police. An estimated 250 shells of teargas were rained on the protestors, along with several rounds of lathi charge and use of water cannons.
On Tuesday, protests at Jantar Mantar, were muted. The Sunday night crackdown seemed to be weighing on many. Most claimed that the police were “instigating violence.” “They cracked down on us harshly and this was an unfortunate repercussion. It was not justified but neither was the attack on Sunday,” a protestor said.
One protestor, who did not wish to be named, said, “The people who are here are for the cause.” However, he felt that the movement needed to be organised if it had to sustain and said, “Even if people come here every day just for five minutes, we could keep the pressure up.”
Another group of students who have come all the way from Punjab said they are here for the long run. “We have been here for the last four days and we will not go back till January 26. If need be, we will boycott Republic Day. It is Christmas today, but there’s no festivity for us. We won’t celebrate New Year’s Day either. The group identified itself as “the stupid common man.”
Meanwhile, the Congress core group that comprises the Prime Minister, Finance Minister, Home Minister, Defence Minister, and UPA chief Sonia Gandhi met to take stock of the situation.