Was everybody too quick to judge the brick-hurling traffic cop Satish Chand? Was he dismissed without having his side of the story heard?
Two days ago the video of Satish Chand hurling a brick at a woman, Ramanjeet Kaur, went viral. In the clip, her school-going children can be seen watching in horror as Chand hurls a brick at her. The Delhi Police that would ordinarily suspend a cop pending an enquiry, appeared to give into the public outrage and dismissed Head Constable Satish Chand without hearing his side of the story.
Facts vs Blind Outrage
But, there are facts that not too many people are willing to face.
1. Ramanjeet Kaur was violating at least four basic traffic rules: riding without a helmet, two pillion riders, jumping a red light, failure to produce license and registration papers.
2. In the unedited video that has been widely circulated, one can clearly see that it is Kaur who first throws a brick/stone in the traffic cop’s direction.
3. There is no concrete proof that constable Satish Chand demanded a bribe, just the woman’s word against the cop’s.
Devil’s Advocate Anyone?
New evidence has now come to light that suggests that what we saw in the video may not be the full story. This audio clip, sourced and reported by The Indian Express, purportedly of events preceding the brick-hurling, provides context to the entire sequence of events.
Here is the key part of the transcript of the audio clip recorded by the dismissed cop Satish Chandra. It shows him repeatedly asking her for her license and registration papers so he can record a traffic violation.
Cop: Bematlab drama mat karo yahan
Woman: Hoga toh
Cop: Dikhao
Woman: Dikha ke kya karna hai?
Cop: Chalaan karenge
Woman: Chalaan karo. Main paise haath mein nahi doongee
Cop: Main court ka kar doonga
Woman: Court ka karo
Cop: Haan toh do, license, RC do. Ye kaun si tameez hai bhai?Woman: Kya tameez hai
Cop: RC, license nahi hai
Woman: Kyon nahi hai license. Hum tucche log dikh rahein hain tumhari tarah?
Cop: Hum tucche dikh rahen hain kya?
Woman: Bilkul. Tucche log hote ho
There can be no excuse for a man in uniform to hurl a brick at a woman who let’s not forget, was accompanied by her little children. But before we get outraged, let’s also not forget that there is a possibility that the cop was acting out in self-defence. That the woman, who was not co-operating despite having broken traffic rules, was endangering her own life, the safety of her children and that of other commuters.
Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court today took cognizance of the incident which took place in Delhi’s posh Golf Links area on 11th May.
Rohtak Repeat?
The half-baked account that has surfaced in the media so far, is reminiscent of the Rohtak sisters who were cheered first as bravehearts, and then dismissed as liars.
A video of theirs thrashing three “eve teasers” played on TV channels on loop. Aarti & Puja claimed a pregnant woman who shot the video was the only one in the bus who supported them. This pregnant woman, despite best efforts by the police, remains untraceable till date.
In the days that followed multiple videos of the girls surfaced which appeared to show them entrapping young men into fistfights. In the course of the investigation, it was reported that they failed a polygraph test, while the three “eve-teasers” passed. One of the young men, Kuldeep is the son of a disabled ex-Armyman and was even barred from appearing for the written army recruitment exam.
Futures have been put at stake. That of Satish Chand who finds himself unemployed, the result of an unjustifiable, physically violent outburst and of Kuldeep and his two other friends - Deepak and Mohit who were wrongly disgraced on one 9 PM debate after another.
The victims sometimes, are difficult to identify in hazy video clips.
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