New Delhi: What was meant to be a relaxing outing at India Gate turned into a harrowing experience for a family from Patel Nagar after they were allegedly roughed up by some police personnel on Sunday night.In a written complaint to a senior police officer on Monday, the family accused three policemen of abusing and assaulting them after asking them to vacate a nearby lawn. The aggrieved family sought the registration of an FIR and action against the cops.According to the complaint, the policemen asked the family to leave the lawn near India Gate at 9.20 pm. The complainant, Rita Singh, alleged that when the family pointed out that the stipulated closing time was 9.30 pm, the cops turned aggressive. “They slapped my family members before twisting my arm when I intervened,” Singh mentioned in her complaint, claiming that some of the cops appeared to be under the influence.Vicky Thakur, Singh’s son, told TOI that the confrontation escalated after the family sought an explanation from the cops about why they should leave before 9.30 pm. “They raised their voices, hurled abuses and manhandled us,” he alleged. “My mother tried to stop the cops when they held us by our collars and became increasingly violent. One of them pushed my mother by the shoulder and then twisted her hand. As a result, her fingers were swollen. Is this the sort of treatment anyone should get while visiting a public space?” Thakur, a folk singer, asked.The family kept on dialling 112, the police emergency helpline, from the spot. “When a PCR team finally arrived, it tried persuading us not to file a complaint and instead settle the matter following an apology. But by then, the cops who had abused and assaulted us had left the spot,” Thakur said.“I kept insisting that we should be taken to hospital so that our medico-legal examinations could be done. However, we were taken for the exam only around 10.30 pm. The entire process took a long time and it was completed only around midnight,” Thakur said.Delhi Police told TOI that the matter is under investigation following the complaint submitted to DCP, New Delhi.
