Delhi Riots: Retd IPS Officer Julio Ribeiro Questions Delhi Police’s Probe

Retired IPS officer Julio Ribeiro on Saturday wrote to Delhi Police Commissioner S N Shrivastava, expressing concern over the entangling of “true patriots” such as Harsh Mander and Prof Apoorvanand in criminal cases.

Ribeiro, in his letter, appealed to Shrivastava to ensure a fair probe into the 753 FIRs registered against the “peaceful protestors who rightly apprehend injustices born from bias and hate against a minority community”.

He wrote: “The Delhi Police has taken action against peaceful protestors but deliberately failed to register cognizable offences against those who made hate speeches which triggered the riots in N.E. Delhi.  It troubles sane and apolitical persons, like me, why Kapil Mishra, Anurag Thakur and Parvesh Verma have not been arraigned before the Courts of law while deeply-hurt Muslim women, peacefully protesting against discriminations based on religion, were lodged for months together in jail!” 

Calling out the Delhi Police’s ‘not-so-subtle’ attempt at dragging the activists into the matter, the former Mumbai Police Commissioner said that this is a matter of concern. “We, the police forces in the land, and its leadership drawn from the Indian Police Service, have a duty and obligation to respect the Constitution and the enacted laws, impartially without regard to caste, creed and political affiliations. Kindly revisit the actions of the police under your command in Delhi to determine if they have been true to their oaths taken at the time of their induction into service.”

The letter comes amid the reports that the Delhi Police has named CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, Swaraj Abhiyan leader Yogendra Yadav, economist Jayati Ghosh and Delhi University professor Apoorvanand in a supplementary chargesheet in the February riots cases, accusing them of “provoking and mobilising” anti-CAA protesters.

Meanwhile, according to a Times of India report, Delhi Police has denied the media reports claiming Yechury, Yadav, Ghosh and Roy having been named as co-conspirators in the supplementary chargesheet. 

The full letter can be read here: 

Dear Shri. Shrivastava,

I write to you with a heavy heart.  As a true patriot and a former proud member of the Indian Police Service I appeal to you to ensure a fair probe into the 753 F.I.Rs registered against peaceful protestors who rightly apprehend injustices born from bias and hate against a minority community.

The Delhi Police has taken action against peaceful protestors but deliberately failed to register cognizable offences against those who made hate speeches which triggered the riots in N.E. Delhi.  It troubles sane and apolitical persons, like me,why Kapil Mishra, Anurag Thakur and Parvesh Verma have not been arraigned before the Courts of law while deeply-hurt Muslim women, peacefully protesting against discriminations based on religion, were lodged for months together in jail!

The not-so-subtle attempt by the Delhi Police to entangle true patriots, like Harsh Mander and Prof. Apoorvanand, in criminal cases is another matter for concern.  We, the police forces in the land, and its leadership drawn from the Indian Police Service, have a duty and obligation to respect the Constitution and the enacted laws, impartially without regard to caste, creed and political affiliations.

Kindly revisit the actions of the police under your command in Delhi to determine if they have been true to their oaths taken at the time of their induction into service.

Yours sincerely,

Julio Ribeiro

I.P.S. (Retd.) 53 MAH

Also read: Delhi Riots: Police Name Yechury, Yogendra Yadav, Jayati Ghosh, in Supplementary Charge Sheet