New Delhi, 03 November (H.S.): Lawyers’ organisations have strongly objected to the use of the term “goons” to describe advocates during a protest by Delhi Police personnel outside Police Headquarters on Monday. The Delhi unit of the All India Lawyers Union (AILU) has urged the Coordination Committee of Bar Associations of all district courts to take a firm stand against any attempt to undermine the process of fixing accountability for alleged police misconduct.

The Rohini Court Bar Association has called upon lawyers to abstain from judicial work on Tuesday. Meanwhile, reports have confirmed the suspension of Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Manasvi Vashishtha following Monday’s demonstration.

In a statement, AILU Delhi unit president Anil Kumar Chauhan and secretary Sanjay Kumar described the remarks attributed to ACP Manasvi Vashishtha as deeply disturbing. They said describing lawyers as “goons” and proposing the deployment of a police “force” inside court premises were wholly condemnable.

The controversy arose after Delhi Police personnel assembled outside Police Headquarters on November 2, demanding that ACP Manasvi Vashishtha and Inspector Arun Kumar be reinstated in their previous postings following their transfers in the wake of a confrontation at Shahdara police station.

The dispute began after advocate Lalit Bansal sustained a serious head injury during an altercation. Lawyers subsequently questioned the conduct of the police personnel involved. They also alleged that ACP Vashishtha had intimidated them by displaying his service revolver.

The All India Lawyers Union has called for an impartial, independent and time-bound inquiry into the serious allegations. It maintained that transferring the officers concerned does not, by itself, fulfil the requirement of accountability. The Union emphasised that wearing a police uniform does not place anyone above the law, nor should institutional solidarity be allowed to obstruct an investigation into alleged police misconduct.

The Union further stated that the incident should be viewed in the wider context of alleged police high-handedness and the misuse of state authority against ordinary citizens, workers and protesters exercising their democratic rights.

It observed that issues ranging from the suppression of peaceful demonstrations to alleged repressive police action against movements seeking justice are intrinsically linked to police accountability and the protection of constitutional freedoms.

Those entrusted with the responsibility of enforcing the law, the Union asserted, must not be placed beyond its reach.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar