HC takes strong view on cops inaction in law faculty violence

"You have thrown her to the wolves", the Delhi High Court told the Delhi Police today for its inaction when a woman Dean of Delhi University's Campus Law Centre (CLC) was held hostage in her office last week by protesting students.
Ved Kumari, the Dean of CLC who broke down while narrating the incident to the court, alleged that the students had entered her office and threatened her with dire consequences in the presence of police personnel.
Claiming that there was lawlessness in the campus for the past one year and several complaints to the police had not been acted upon, she alleged that during the protests, the students threatened her saying "tumhe muh dikhane layak nahin chhodenge (you will not be in a position to show your face)."

The high court had on its own initiated proceedings relating to the reported violence during a protest by the Law Faculty students on May 19 against the Dean for not being allowed to sit in the year's semester examination on grounds of shortage of attendance.
A bench of justices Siddharth Mridul and Mukta Gupta pulled up the police for not taking any action when the protest turned violent, the Dean's office vandalised and threats were given to her.
"You have thrown her to wolves. You are feeding wolves by not separating them from the sheep. Police is seeing that a cognisable offence is being committed in front of its eyes but they do not act unless the institution's head informs them.

"Under which law it says that a police official cannot act on its own if a cognisable offence is being committed in front of its eyes. You are acting contrary to law," it said.

The court asked the Delhi Police Commissioner, Delhi University Vice Chancellor, CLC's incharge Prof Usha Tandon and Dean Ved Kumari to file their affidavits by July 11 regarding the incident which occurred inside the CLC precincts of CLC in May and December last year and again on May 19.
The court directed the vice chancellor to ensure that these incidents do not recur and asked him to file a detailed affidavit on the action taken on the complaints given by Dean before and after the incidents.

The Dean said she had informed the police in advance that there could be a law and order problem. She also said the incident happened in the presence of police officials who were not doing anything except videographing it and had asked her if she wanted to compel the students to commit suicide. She said thereafter, she feared going to her office.
"The head of an institution is resisting from going to her office when she is required there the most. What worse law and order situation can be," the bench observed.
Advocate Avi Singh, appearing for Delhi Police, said there is a convention as per which the police do not enter the university campuses unless a request is being made by the authorities, though they are deployed at the college gates.

The argument, however, did not go down well with the bench which said "you were standing there and witnessed everything but no action was taken as there was no formal complaint. This is all happening because you do not take action."
The bench said there was an urgent need to put an end to such incidents and asked the police about its security arrangements.
"Students who are short of attendance vandalise everything and create problem for other students and teachers. Whatever may be the reason, these incidents have no place. This cannot be tolerated. We want to know what you (police) did in the aftermath of this incident," the court said.

The bench said it was "pained and saddened" to see the alleged inaction of authorities charged with maintaining and enforcing law and order.
"There is no manner of doubt that on the particular occasion, despite their presence on the spot, police had not taken action as per law against violent protesters," it said.
The court had on May 23 taken suo motu cognisance of news reports on the protest by students at CLC.