The beleaguered Delhi Police, facing heavy brick batting in trouble-torn East Delhi, brought out two special weapons from its arsenal, Prince and King, to keep an eye on trouble makers on the occasion of Muharram.
The national Capital was on the boil after the Bawana Mahapanchayat and Trilokpuri incidents and it needed meticulous and sensible handling to allow Muharram to pass off peacefully. Trilokpuri witnessed communal clashes over Diwali celebrations on October 23, which left 60 people, including policemen, injured. Then came the Mahapanchayat on Sunday in Bawana that vitiated the communal atmosphere in the city. So the police decided to bring Prince and King into the picture to keep an eye on things.
For the uninitiated, Prince (12) and King (15) are two of the Delhi Police’s best stallions and were especially pressed into service after the force requisitioned the help of its Mounted Police to maintain order on Tuesday.
The Delhi Mounted Police has 50 horses (stallions and mares) that it keeps at Belapur stable and all of them were deployed in the city on Tuesday as the force geared up to deal with rising tempers in the city.The most experienced of the lot, black-coloured Prince and brown-coloured King were at work since 6 am on Tuesday and worked tirelessly to ensure that Muharram in Trilokpuri passed off peacefully. “Trained to work in riot-like situations these horses have been performing tricky tasks as and when required by the force,” said a senior Delhi Police officer.
Sadly, King will be retiring next year as the stallion is now 15 years old and has to be put to pasture according to the rules of service.“King will retire next year. During Muharram last year, he and Prince were on duty in the Old Delhi area,” Divender, his handler said on Tuesday.Omvir, Prince’s handler, said that all the horses of the Mounted Police were on duty across the city on Tuesday to ensure a hassle-free Muharram.
Set up in the 1930s, the Mounted Police horses are used for maintaining law and order in the city. They are now also used in ceremonial functions. Of the total horses, 47 are lodged in the stable yard at the Provisioning and logistic unit of Delhi Police located in Civil lines area of North Delhi, while three are kept in South Delhi’s Kalkaji Police Station. Each horse has a handler, who is of the rank of Constable or Head Constable. The Mounted Police comprises two Sub-Inspectors, 22 Head Constables and 75 Constables.