In his first interview after being appointed chief of Delhi Police, S.N. Shrivastava spoke to THE WEEK about the need to instil confidence in all sections of society through a fair and impartial probe into the recent riots in North East Delhi. A former head of the anti-terror wing, Delhi Police, Shrivastava was also CRPF special director general in Jammu and Kashmir when a joint offensive in 2017 eliminated top rung militants in the valley. He said that facial recognition software has been used to identify rioters in Delhi and that people who participated in crimes like murder “cannot and should not insist that their privacy is being breached”. Edited excerpts:
Q/ Why did the situation go out of hand? Was there a lack of intelligence?
A/ We are still investigating. In due course, we will be able to connect the threads and understand the reasons behind it. I also do not want to look back. That is not the way I function. Having said that, I feel that we must certainly improve our intelligence collection and response to a developing situation. We need to be faster, and fair and impartial. All sections of the society should have enough faith in us. It is only then that any action taken by us will have an impact on the situation.
Q/ Do you think traditional methods of policing need to be revived?
A/ All policemen, irrespective of their rank, have their charter of work. They are aware of the prescribed work and have to act appropriately and in time. They should have sufficient confidence that if they are unable to deliver or if there is a bona fide error, then they will be protected against punitive action as long as their intention was good. I intend to boost their confidence further.
Q/ So far, what is coming out in the investigation?
A/ We have already registered a case to probe links to the Islamic State of Khorasan Province (branch of IS active in Afghanistan and Pakistan). There are also certain local forces whose role is being probed. I do not wish to name them now. I am sure there will be some external forces which maybe active.
Q/ Is there evidence to suggest that external forces were funding the riots?
A/ The funding is being probed. The ED has taken up the matter.
Q/ If there was a big conspiracy behind the riots, does it not show lapses on the part of the Delhi Police?
A/ I reserve my comments for a future date as we are still investigating the matter. But I know what to do in the future and I also know what I am doing right now.
Q/ The Union Home Minister Amit Shah praised the Delhi Police for bringing the riots under control in 36 hours. Is that a clean chit to the Delhi Police?
A/ Who else will know [the facts] better than the home minister? He has information from all the agencies. We accept his comments and thank him for saying so. The Delhi Police controlled the riots by the evening of February 25 and after that no incident took place. Some people who had shifted out of their homes are returning now. The schools and colleges are open and exams are taking place. All these are indicators of normalcy settling in. At the same time, we have registered 712 cases until now. We have made more than 220 arrests.
Q/ How will you ensure a fair probe ?
A/ We are making use of scientific methods and technical tools for the investigation. We have to be fair and impartial and there should be no complaint from anyone that we have been partial to any group. I know that without being impartial, I cannot do a good job. A fair probe is a prerequisite to restoring peace and normalcy.
Q/ The Delhi police is using advanced facial recognition software to track down the accused. How successful has it been?
A/ The software or the application we have is doing its job. When the videos are shot, they are not shot in an ideal setting since everything is in motion. So when we pick a picture from the video, it does not have absolute clarity. If we improve the system, then we will be able to improve the quality of the pictures and match with the [police] database better. With time, we are going to improve it.
Q/ How big is the police database? Has Aadhaar been used to identify the accused?
A/ We have not used Aadhaar database because the Supreme Court guidelines does not allow it to be shared with law enforcement agencies. However, we are using our own criminal database, data available with the Uttar Pradesh Police, driving licences, voter identity cards and photographs.
Q/ There are concerns of breach of privacy and misuse of technology by law enforcement agencies.
A/ There is no reason to be concerned about it. We are not taking personal details. These are only photographs and the identity of the person. So there is no question of privacy. Secondly, people participating in henious crimes like murder, attempt to murder, rioting and destruction of public property, cannot and should not insist that their privacy is being breached. It is the responsibility not only of the police but also the entire society that all the culprits are identified and taken to court.
Q/ Are there concerns of radicalisation among youth?
A/ I have no reason to believe that any radicalisation has taken place because of these riots. But I remember that in my previous stint in Delhi, we found that some boys were in touch with more radicalised persons who got arrested later. These boys were in the initial stages of radicalisation. So instead of arresting them, we counselled them and sent them back under the guardianship of their parents. We also kept a watch on them. So, counselling helps and this is one of the areas we will focus on.