When Radhika Tanwar was murdered, that too on Women’s Day and also with the murderer nonchalantly walking away from the site, it was a God-sent for the media, which clambered one on top of the other to hitch on to the band wagon – yes, this is the copy that sells!!
The fact that the Delhi Police took its own sweet time to respond with confusion about a gun shot and a mobile bursting and, as usual, were and are still totally clueless is another point.
But even in face of all the blundering by the Delhi Police, does the media have any moral right to crucify them??
I would say NO!
And to prove it I have a story and a story about a story which was not published because there were so many advertisements that there was not enough space to carry the story.
And to prove it I have a story and a story about a story which was not published because there were so many advertisements that there was not enough space to carry the story.
On 15th December I was on way from Gurgaon to Defence Colony when I experience firsthand the inefficiency of Delhi Police – and the set of personnel were the same – the same DCP Dhaliwal, the same DCP PCR, the same set of circumstances – Delhi Police not responding even after half an hour of placing three calls to ‘100’.
I wrote a story and sent it to the editor at Delhi Times – the story was ‘excellent’ and ‘well appreciated’ and ‘will be published in a day or two’ (‘as soon as we get some space free from advertisements’). But the day or two have turned into more than a month and two and still we are waiting for some ‘space’. In the meantime Radhika conveniently gets murdered and lo and behold – space, the opportunity, and the means of crucifying the police and selling papers!! Wow!!
I am placing below the story which was not published – read it and decide for yourself that when the media could have taken action much before and did not and maybe is morally equally guilty in this whole episode, does it now have the moral right to crucify the police?
q.e.d.
THE UNPUBLISHED STORY
'HOW MUCH TIME DOES IT TAKE DELHI POLICE TO RESPOND TO '100''
Time : 8.45 PM
Date : 15th December 2010
Place : MG Road, near Sultanpur Metro Station.
City : Anyone can guess after reading the story.
A doctor on way to Defence Colony finds a jam of vehicles blocking the MG Road. A group of motorcycles are parked by the roadside and the cars just idling, their drivers, passengers and owners glancing out of windows as if some street show is in progress. A man is lying motionless on the road, his clothes all splattered with blood.
The doctor stops his car and rushes to the victim who by this time has been subjected to all sorts of therapy by the onlookers – made to sit up, shaken, pulled up by his hands, everything not to be done. Had it been a spine injury the man would surely die, if not from the accident, then surely by the administrations of the Good Samaritans. The doctor stops all this quackery and lies the victim straight, checks his pulse and breathing and dials the Police Control Room.
The time is 8:45 PM.
Most of the motorcyclists stop, get down and come over to offer advice – ‘someone call the PCR’, ‘dial 100’, but none want to actually dial the number, maybe afraid of the nemesis. All cars stop, look and go.
The doctor makes another call to the PCR – “which police station does this area fall under?”, he is asked. “My dear”, he wants to tell them, scream at them, “that is your job, not mine”. “A PCR vehicle is on the way – we know there is an injured person there”.
The time is 9:01 PM.
The crowd peters away, then reassembles. The motorcyclist involved in the accident is waiting with bated breath. The doctor is waiting with even more bated breath – had it been a severe injury the victim would have been dead.
The time is 9:10 PM. Someone comes up with a unique idea – it really happens only in India – the victim is hauled up on the motorcycle and taken away somewhere – to some hospital, to be thrown away by the road side anywhere, no one knows.
The doctor gets into his car and drives away.
The time is 9:15 PM.
Delhi Police with the slogan ‘With you, for you, always’ has an excellent website which starts with the commissioner’s name and email id and promises ‘Easy accessibility and availability of officers to public’ and has a ‘contact us’ page with the email id’s and phone numbers of all senior officers and states ‘Now, if you face any problem at any police station just fax or e-mail your grievances. For immediate redressal’.
Emails were sent to the DCP (South) and DCP (PCR) on 16th December and 17th December and numerous phone calls were made to both officers.
The response – no response.
The moral of the story – Only two popular slogans need to be reworded ‘Dilli lal batti waalon ki’, ‘Dilli meri badnaam’.
Theodore Roosevelt rightly said – The only man who never makes mistakes is the man who never does anything.
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