In Amritsar's Chhertta area, a sub-inspector in uniform lost his life last December after he resisted a local gangster and ruling Akali Dal leader who was sexually harassing his young daughter. The gangster shot the police officer dead in full public view. The area police, barely a few metres away, failed to turn up on time despite being informed of the incident.
All this reminds one of the manner in which the police had run amok in the 1980s and early 1990s - all in the name of putting down the terrorist movement to demand Khalistan - a separate state for Sikhs.
"It is high time that the Punjab Police themselves got some policing lessons on how to deal with common people. The VIPs and police officers are protected by state security, leaving the common man to the mercy of police officers who think they are a law unto themselves," a retired Punjab Police officer said.
