20 injured as cops, police assistants on contract clash during Ranchi protest
A police official said that the clash started at 2 p.m. when regular police personnel restrained around 2,000 Sahayak Police, who were agitating for their demand of absorption in regular police service since July 2 at the Morabadi ground, after they started running towards the CM House, violating the prohibitory order of the district administration.
At least 20 people, including a dozen policemen, sustained injuries after Jharkhand’s regular police and contractual Sahayak Police clashed during an agitation in Ranchi on Friday, officials close to the matter said.
A police official said that the clash started at 2 p.m. when regular police personnel restrained around 2,000 Sahayak Police, who were agitating for their demand of absorption in regular police service since July 2 at the Morabadi ground, after they started running towards the CM House, violating the prohibitory order of the district administration.
“The Sahayak Police started running. They broke the barricade and assaulted policemen who came in their way. They broke as many as four barricades and to do so assaulted as many as 12 policemen between Morabadi ground and the CM House,” the police official said.
“The road leading to the official residence of Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren on Kanke Road remained inaccessible to the common people for more than two hours from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Traffic was diverted towards arterial roads to ensure smooth movement of traffic, but despite that, vehicular movement remained disturbed,” the official added.
According to an official at the Lower Bazar police station, five police officials have been sent to Sadar Hospital for treatment.
Officer-in-charge of Kotwali police station Ranjeet Kumar Sinha, who also sustained an injury, confirmed the situation.
“They were aggressive and unstoppable. I sustained a minor injury when agitators pelted stones. But, I have seen an IRB jawan sustaining head injuries due to the attack,” he said.
A third police official said that the agitators got strong resistance from regular police when they attempted to barge into the house of the chief minister.
“After three to four minutes of lathi charge, they became silent and sat outside the CM House. They raised slogans supporting their demands and finally left around 4 pm,” the official said.
“An FIR is yet to be registered in this connection. Sections 191 and 198 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) will be used to register an FIR in the matter,” the official added.
Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Chandan Kumar Sinha, who reporters witnessed at the CM House with deputy commissioner (DC) Rahul Kumar Sinha, said he could not speak on the matter.
“I was inside the CM House. Can’t say what happened outside,” SP Sinha said.
On the other hand, DC Sinha denied using force against the Sahayak Police. “There was no lathi charge. Some of the officers on duty might have retaliated due to the unruly behaviour of agitators, but from the side of the district administration, there was no lathi charge order. The district administration always continued dialogue and returned them to Morabadi by convincing them through dialogue.”
Asked about the arrangement to restrain the Sahayak Police from reaching the CM House, DC Sinha said, “Double barricades were used to stop them. Police personnel and magistrates were deputed at 22 strategic locations. Drone surveillance was also being done to monitor their movement. Apart from this, proper instructions were given to videographers to take footage of their activities,” he said.
DGP Ajay Kumar Singh could not be available for a comment on the matter.
However, Additional Director General (ADG) Raj Kumar Mallick said the incident was unfortunate.
“We had dialogues with the Sahayak Police around 10:30 am. They were told that the government has planned to extend their contract for a year besides increasing their remuneration by 25 per cent and finding possibilities for their regular services in departments where men in uniform are required, like the Forest Department, Home Guard, Excise Department, and others. But despite that, they behaved improperly,” Mallick said.
A regular police constable said it was a hard time for him dealing with the Sahayak Police. “I give my moral support to the Sahayak Police as they do hard labour in Naxal-affected areas. My hand was trembling using a baton on them as they were also in uniform and always helped us in Naxal-affected areas. May the government fulfil their demand. They are young, and energetic and well aware of the locality where they have been posted. They also know local dialects and help us with intelligence gathering. If they are not absorbed into any service, Maoists will target them, and some of them may join Naxal forces,” the regular police said.
Meanwhile, the general secretary of the Sahayak Police Association, Ujjwal Kumar, who is from Chatra, said the dialogue is an eyewash.
“It was the third time assurance was given to us. We were recruited in 2017 on an honorarium of ₹10,000 per month to assist regular policemen in all the 12 Naxal-affected districts of Jharkhand. Though we worked as regular police, no hike was given in our honorarium for the last seven years. We are not given any allowance or any medical benefits. Earlier, the JMM government had given similar assurance, but nothing was done in this direction. We do not want a one-year extension every year but a regular job. We are real Jharkhandis. When Article 370 can be abolished, why can’t we be absorbed into the regular police force? This time we could not go inside the CM House, but if the CM does not take proper action, we would barge in. We will also meet Union home minister Amit Shah to talk on the matter,” he said.
Priyanka Biruli, a Sahayak Police who had come from Chaibasa, said, “As the agitation was going on, a section of police uprooted the tent in which we were living for the last 18 days and took away food grains and LPG cylinders from our mess.”
Another Sahayak Police, Anjali Toppo, from the same district, echoed Biruli. “A Dy SP rank officer asked us to leave Morabadi, threatening us with dire consequences if some of us stayed in the camp during the agitation.”