How Dil Ki Police is winning hearts in Corona times
“Sweet are the uses of adversity,” said the Bard in his popular play As You Like It.
And what bigger adversity could befall us than the ongoing scourge of Covid-19 that has left over three lakh dead - and counting – the world over. The world economy lies in tatters, millions have been rendered jobless and the future appears gloomy. But the crisis, besides creating widespread mayhem, has also brought to fore the limitless resilience and the undying spirit of mankind.
We Indians have seen with considerable pride the tireless and risky work done by our doctors, nursing staff, paramedics, and in equal measure, by the police of our country, who have gone far beyond their call of duty in not only enforcing the lockdown, but providing relief measures to the hungry, shelter to the stranded and succour to the helpless. Most of their individual stories that run counter to their stereotypical image may perhaps never be told, as is often the case even during normal times. But, they seem to have perhaps surprised themselves, not to speak of their diehard critics, with their humane and benevolent work, media reports of some of which have trickled in, in bits and pieces, through the lockdown.
I am not referring to cops putting on helmets depicting Coronavirus trying to scare people; or police officers singing patriotic numbers in residential colonies on their megaphones; or, for that matter, policemen and women visiting lonely citizens with birthday cakes. Instead, I wish to talk about the remarkably selfless and genuine social work that the Indian police, and nearer home the Delhi Police, have done right through the protracted lockdown and its various aftermaths.
For instance, a media report on May 2 said that when ASI Arvind Kumar, posted at PS Moti Nagar in West District, went to pick up his daughter from a coaching institute in Janakpuri, she narrated to him the plight of her stranded friend Sushmita Shaw, who could not return home to Kolkata because of the lockdown, and with the residential facility at the institute closed down, she had nowhere to go. Without batting an eyelid, Kumar brought the girl home and asked his wife and daughter to make her feel comfortable. The girl continues to stay with the ASI’s family till date, through the six weeks of the lockdown, in their tiny two-room abode. It was only after the girl’s mother Sangeeta Shaw wrote on social media to thank the Commissioner of Police, Delhi, that the world came to know of Arvind Kumar’s and his family’s magnanimity. Recognising his good work, his CP gave him a reward of Rs 10,000 with a commendation.
In another such instance, a pregnant lady, Anupa, living with her husband Vikram Singh in Wazirpur Industrial Area, began to have labour pains. The couple was unable to get an ambulance or any other transport to reach the hospital. In sheer desperation, they called the Police Control Room. Constable Dayavir Singh of Police station Ashok Vihar was directed to take them in a police jeep to Bara Hindu Rao Hospital, where she delivered a healthy baby boy. Out of sheer gratitude for the Delhi Police, the couple named their newborn son Dayavir, after their saviour constable.
In a similar instance, Mini, a pregnant lady, the wife of a factory worker, residing in Raghuvir Nagar went into labour at 9 pm. But due to the lockdown, the couple was unable to find any means to reach the hospital. They informed the nearest police chowki of PS Paschim Vihar, from where head constable Dharamveer and constable Kuldeep came to their aid. As they were driving her to the nearest hospital in a police jeep, the lady’s labour pains grew intense. Mini delivered a healthy baby in the police vehicle itself. The Delhi cops then brought a doctor with nursing staff to the spot and under their care took her to the nearest nursing home for postnatal care.
In umpteen instances, the Delhi Police intervened when senior citizens, single women, daily wagers and the homeless called them for help. In one such case, seven Kashmiri girls staying in a PG accommodation in Jia Serai in South West Delhi were desperate to go home but didn’t know how to. They turned to the district police that issued them movement passes and arranged transport for them with the help of the J&K House to safely travel back home. On numerous occasions, beat constables have arranged medicines for the old and the sick; single women have been assured of safety and security; and poor labourers have been fed and taken care of in their camps.
Many landlords were reported to be forcibly evicting poor tenants for not being able to pay rent during the lockdown. The Delhi Police have always intervened to guard the interests of the tenants. In one such case from Karol Bagh, the area DCP himself went to the spot and met with the landlord, on whose premises lived four daily wage earners, who had been locked out by the landlord. The DCP ‘advised’ the homeowner to refrain from evicting his indigent tenants during the lockdown, and assured the man that the police will give him the rent, if the daily wagers failed to do so. The landlord relented and the poor tenants continue to have a roof over their heads.
Besides enforcing the lockdown effectively, the Delhi Police, with the help of good samaritans and NGOs, have provided over 50 lakh food packets to the hungry, a work for which Union Home Minister Amit Shah has lauded them. Apart from taking care of the public at large, the police leadership has taken care of its men and women as well, some of whom have, unfortunately, fallen prey to the virus. As last reports came in, 88 Delhi Police officers and men are Covid-19 positive and one constable has, regrettably, succumbed to the virus. Let every citizen of Delhi know that their police brethren have paid a heavy price enforcing the lockdown and in moving the infected to hospitals.
The Delhi Police have discovered their humane side that was lying dormant somewhere within them, weighed down under the daily grind of police work involving investigations, law and order, patrolling, picket duties, court attendance and so on. The force, under immense work pressure, seemed to have forgotten the innate humanness that lies buried deep inside them.
As a former leader of the force, my heart swells with pride to know that my colleagues have discovered their mojo in the time of adversity. As things begin to normalise, I sincerely hope that they do not lose sight of this quality of theirs in their day-to-day interactions with the public. They are one arm of the government that comes in contact with scores of people in distress. Just as they have gone the extra mile in providing succour to the needy during the Covid-19 crisis, they should continue to deal with the people in distress with similar kindness and go out of the way to help them.
As and when normalcy returns, the police are bound to get back to their routine work that often involves rough and ready actions, split-second decisions and strict enforcements. They must remember that they can perform their core functions with the same mind and heart as they have done during the current crisis.
If they continue to walk the extra mile in their day-to-day public dealings, as they have done during the ongoing pandemic, the police would have undergone a metamorphosis that no police reforms could have brought. Equally, they must maintain and build on the friendships they have forged in the community during the current crisis. That would erase forever the negativity and chasm that have existed between them and the society they serve.
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