890 personnel failed to stop assault on Kanhaiya Kumar

As many as 890 security personnel in uniform along with 27 senior officers, including a deputy commissioner of police, failed to prevent assault on JNU Students’ Union president Kanhaiya Kumar, students, teachers and journalists on February 17 at the Patiala House courts complex in the city.

The men in uniform, posted for security measures in the court complex, were not only from the Delhi police, but also from the CRPF and the ITBP. Mr Kumar was assaulted despite a posse of 40 police personnel, including 15 men in plainclothes, escorting him to ensure his safety in a cavalcade of six vehicles from the Vasant Kunj police station to the city court. The details related to the deployment of security personnel at the court complex are part of a report prepared by the Delhi police.

A copy of the report, accessed by this newspaper, has revealed there were as many as 275 personnel from the CRPF, including three assistant commandants and three inspectors; 70 personnel from the ITBP, including one assistant commandant and one inspector; 150 Delhi police personnel, including 15 inspectors and six assistant commissioners of police besides others in the court complex. The report, prepared by New Delhi range joint commissioner of police Mukesh Kumar Meena, said during repeated assault attempts by groups of lawyers on the student union leader 10 policemen were also injured.

The report said that a group of lawyers, who had already assembled inside the court complex, tried to assault Mr Kumar from different sides. “The ring round team and policemen deployed on the route surrounded him from all sides and gave body protection and thwarted repeated attempts to manhandle the accused. Lot of commotion followed, but he was escorted safely to the court room by the policemen despite some hiccups.”

Strangely, the report has not given any details about the injuries which were received by Mr Kumar in the assault by lawyers. It said: “Later, the accused Kanhaiya Kumar alleged that around 3 pm he was attacked by lawyers and a group of goons bashed him up, tore his clothes and plucked his hair.” After the directions from the court, he was medically examined. Mr Kumar’s medical report said he had chest pain and cough and had minor injuries on his foot, toe and nose.

The report said that Mr Kumar had also told the registrar-general that he had seen some persons who had attacked him while entering the same chamber where he was present. The registrar-general and Mr Kumar’s lawyers alerted the police following which a search was launched to trace the two suspects. The report, however, said that the two suspected attackers had “disappeared into the mob outside the court office/ chamber.”

The report also said that a few projectiles were also hurled towards different groups and on the visiting lawyers who had come on the directions of the Supreme Court. “This was coupled with liberal dosage of even abusive language.”

The eight-page report concluded by saying that the court complex has eight gates where all persons, excluding the ones in lawyers’ attire, are frisked and checked. It said: “A black coat entry by anyone not connected with the profession cannot be ruled out. Also, the complex approximately houses 36 courts, wherein a lot of litigants enter the premises without showing any identity.”