The Hindu : New Delhi News : Police in denial mode over attack on Geelani

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Feb 12, 2005

New Delhi

New Delhi

Police in denial mode over attack on Geelani

With a multitude of theories being floated from all quarters concerned and no concrete evidence available, the murderous attack on Syed Abdul Rahman Geelani this past Tuesday has given way to a lot of speculation. And with the Delhi police being accused of having been involved in the attack, it is obvious that the sooner they crack the case the better it would be for them.

For their part, the police have staunchly refuted all allegations of their involvement. Some activists have alleged that the police were keeping track of Mr. Geelani's movement and only they could have had information about Mr. Geelani's visit to his lawyer where he was shot at. But the police have dismissed the allegations as baseless.

The police maintain that even if the manner of the attack suggested that the assailant might have had some information about Mr. Geelani's movement, it is not proper to point fingers at anyone until the truth is out. They have been reiterating that they are working on various angles including the possibility of somebody wanting to take revenge.

Rumours are also doing the rounds about those convicted in the Parliament attack case turning bitter against Mr. Geelani after his acquittal and masterminding the attack on him. The police are non-committal about most of the theories. They say the investigations are in an early stage and saying anything at this point could hamper the probe.

Mr. Geelani was accused of being involved in the Parliament attack in 2001 and was convicted by court. However, the Delhi High Court had acquitted him for lack of evidence. The police then approached the Supreme Court against the judgment and the hearing is in the final stages.

Those alleging police involvement in the incident argue that the police are nervous about the prospects of a likely acquittal of Mr. Geelani and this probably led to the incident. The police have denied this allegation too.

On the other hand, the police have maintained that the delay in informing them of the incident resulted in loss of crucial time which could have proved useful for investigations. Delhi Police Commissioner K. K. Paul told media persons that the police were informed about 45 minutes after the incident.

Another issue which is being debated is whether the police erred in not providing security to Mr. Geelani. His lawyers had told the court that there was a threat to his life. But the police have maintained that they were not approached with such a request.

All said and done, the police are yet to make any major breakthrough in the case. For the time being, they only have theories to work upon. Mr. Geelani is not yet fit enough to make a statement to the police. The police are hoping that his statement would help them in recreating the sequence of events and also possibly get a sketch of the assailant.

As per directions of the Supreme Court, the police will be filing a status report on the case by this coming Tuesday. Without doubt they would like to put an end to all speculation by identifying and arresting the assailant by then.

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