Time for the police force to wise up

The obviously better equipped peddlers started pelting the police personnel with stones forcing them into hiding

There is something to be said about the lack of preparedness of our police personnel if they come away beaten black and blue by a bunch of African drug peddlers. A report in this paper stated that a posse of 60 Railway Protection Force and Mumbai Police personnel — 20 officers and 40 constables — went after seven or eight drug peddlers along the railway tracks at Sandhurst Road on Wednesday night. But, what should have been a shoo-in, turned out to be something out of a very bad Kollywood film.

The obviously better equipped peddlers started pelting the police personnel with stones forcing them into hiding. As if that was not bad enough, when one of the braver cops managed to get his hands on one of the hoodlums, he got bashed on the head with a bamboo stick. Clearly indicating that the police teams blundered in without knowing what to expect. Our policemen should have anticipated the peddlers' every move before the raid, considering this was not the first time they took a royal pasting at the hands of the criminals.

Three months ago, during an Anti-Narcotics Cell crackdown on drug peddlers on the tracks, an assistant police inspector got pelted with stones. In 2016, Crime Branch cops got stoned by the peddlers during Operation Sabak.

All this only proves that our police personnel don't seem to have a strategy in place while taking on stronger and wilier opponents. Strategy is the single most important constituent in any combat situation.

Another thing, quite obviously, is fitness levels. That 60 cops chose to take cover instead of rushing in to grab the eight peddlers is more than a little startling. Our police force needs to seriously overhaul their approach while dealing with stronger, smarter opponents, instead of ending up with egg on face, again and again.

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