Home Minister Gaikhangam’s assurance to investigate the incident involving commandos in snatching money from a hawker though it has assuaged the wounded feeling of the victim yet it still has a long way to go before pinning down the real culprit. It happens in Manipur the perpetrators of the crime cannot be punished for one reason or the other. Such incidents involving police personnel are achromatic in dragging down the image of the Government. Image that had been built over the years had been dragged down by such incidents unleashed by uniform men. The whole nation was awake by the molestation of a girl by some youths for nearly half an hour in Guwahati when she came out from a bar. Assam the hot bed of the crime was dubbed as the place unsafe for women. Since then too many heads had rolled down in Assam and the massive man hunt of the perpetrators of the crime that followed became the talk of the nation. There is similarity between the molestation of the girl by thugs with the torture meted out to the hawker by the police personnel. Both are hapless victims. The difference is the sex and the persons involved. While the Assam incident was committed by thugs Manipur incident by men in uniform. Luckily Assam incident was recorded on camera. If Manipur incident was recorded it too would have gained importance like that of the killing of Sanjit at Khwairamband bazaar. The issue connected with hawker is not going to die down peacefully. A section of the people has threatened to resort to democratic form of agitation to get justice. Despite showing his identity card he was punished without any reason. If the police suspected of his involvement in any crime he could have been taken to a police station and lodged in a lock up. Newspaper report says, he escaped from the clutch of the police personnel as he shouted in pitch voice that attracted local men. Such incident committed by police personnel without any rhyme and reason could have been avoided if the police personnel were taught on regular basis about establishing better relationship with the common masses. Gaikhngam had announced boldly that he would make police department people friendly organisation. He also said he would hold discussion with the police officials at SP level regularly, all for establishing better ties with the common people. But nothing has changed. Police continues to be as they were made to be. The situation now calls for complete overhaul of the department. That will open the eyes and minds of all concerned. How security men behave in the civilised world. That must be a lesson. The security men need to be told time and again that they should work showing respect to all. Similar stand taken by the Assam Government to nab the molesters can be taken by the state Government to nab the tormentors of the hawker. The first step that needs to be done is to return the amount and the two wheelers that had been taken away from the hawker by the personnel.
Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/tormenting-civilian-a-way-of-life/
