Delhi Police Commissioner S.N. Shrivastava on Monday said the police have registered over 300 FIRs in connection with the riots in north-east Delhi.
He said that the situation remained peaceful across the city on Monday and requested people to verify any unconfirmed reports of riots or disturbance with the central police control room. “We request people to come with any electronic evidence or their own testimony if they have witnessed any kind of violence. We have issued a WhatsApp number and an e-mail where people can send videos or other material that can help police identify the people involved in violence,” said Mr. Shrivastava.
The Police Commissioner did not make any references to the progress in investigation of previous cases of violence that broke out during anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act protests in Central, South East and North East districts.
On December 18, protesters had pelted stones at policemen in the Seelampur-Jaffrabad area.
Mr. Shrivastava’s predecessor Amulya Patnaik faced much criticism for police action as well as inaction during anti-CAA protests that started on December 15 with violence outside Jamia Millia Islamia. His tenure saw policemen protest outside the police headquarters demanding ‘justice’ after their colleague was beaten up by a lawyer at the Saket Courts and the accused was not arrested.
Mr. Shrivastava was repatriated from the Central Reserve Police Force and appointed as Special Commissioner (law and order) of Delhi Police. He was drafted in the middle of the communal violence in north-east Delhi and has been taking stock of the situation since then. He has been seen more often in public than his predecessor.