Uttarakhand Police, which have won accolades as Mitra police, seems to be losing their sheen mainly because of their dwindling will to go for proper planning. Due to this, they faced the wrath from the residents living between Jogiwala to Harrawala on Friday.
The people, exasperated with the news of a young man falling to the criminals' bullets while resisting them in his house in Nakraunda road, blocked the Haridwar- Dehradun national highway at lakshman Siddh temple. Police raised barricade at Jogiwala Chowk and another at Bhaniawala Chowk by parking their jeep. That they were annoyed with the police not rising to the occasion was unmistakable throughout the stir they staged.
To add to their anger, some police personnel were found misbehaving with the people in the name of enforcing order. They looked intent on baring fangs on those who keep demanding them to arrest the accused since September 10.The question is -why police forced those residing in Santoshnagar which is located before Miyanwala Chowk to take detour through Nehru Gram Road via Tunwala.
The question is doing the rounds as to why police who have been doing research on how to penalise people by constituting a dedicated force like City Patrol Unit (CPU), failed to do such research in the realm of crime control. Most of the police deployment is being seen in the urban areas of Dehradun while the city is now expanding fast into rural areas with things in the town proper having reached a saturation point. To get fresh air, people are building houses along Haridwar Road. But these places are not being provided with security.
Talking to The Pioneer, the CMI nursing college vice principal M Kavitha said when she reached Harrawala Chowk police did not allow her vehicle to cross Harrawala Chowk. When she requested them to let her pass she was asked to show her identity card. She was told too she would be allowed to walk only after that, she recounted. later, she walked all her way from Harrawala to her nursing college in Kuanwala. Her colleagues faced the same ordeal.
When The Pioneer informed Garhwal DIG Amit Sinha about barricading Jogiwala, which landed the people in trouble with police allowing traffic up to Miyanwala Chowk because of the congestion at lakshmansiddh temple, he said he was not aware of the order. But he assured he would enquire and will ask the police personnel to allow at least the local people up to Miyanwala.