A 7-year-old boy has countered the assertions of a top cop in Kerala who has said that the police had not conducted any indiscriminate lathi charge at Puthuvype protesters on June 17.
Going into details, the protesters had gathered at the High Court junction to protest against the opening of Indian Oil Corporation Limited's (IOC) LPG import terminal at Puthuvype.
The representatives of the Kerala State Human Rights Commission (KSHRC) had called for a hearing at the Collectorate conference hall in Ernakulam on Wednesday.
The lathi charge led by the then DCP Yatish Chandra had been conducted a day ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Kochi for the inauguration of Kochi Metro.
While Chandra justified the lathi charge claiming it was part of his duty to ensure the protection of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the police action had attracted widespread criticism as it left many injured. It was then that Chandra was summoned by the Commission.
"He hit me", alleges child
The boy who was initially a spectator at the hearing turned into a witness when Chandra kept on denying that the police had indiscriminately lathi-charged the protesters.
"He hit me. I saw this uncle hit other people and they had to be hospitalised. The next day, his photo even came in the newspaper," Alan was quoted as saying by the News Minute. Alan pointed his finger at Chandra when he spoke.
Human Rights Commission chairperson P Mohandas asked the child whether he had indeed seen the officer manhandle people. To this, Alan nodded his head and continued to say yes despite his mother tugging at his shirt to calm him down.
While the account of this young witness left the senior police officer astonished, he in a rather friendly tone said, "Me? Who hit you, child? Me? What's your name?".
Besides alleging the police of indiscriminate lathi charge, the protestors who were detained, have also alleged that the police denied them bathroom facilities.
However, the senior police officer denied the allegations and asked the commission to scan through the CCTV footage.
"The women were not taken inside the station. They were sitting in the compound. CCTV visuals will clearly show kids happily using the bathroom. We did provide them water and milk," the officer said.
The Commission has asked the police to furnish the CCTV footage to support their claims.
