The video of the beatings that two young men have been dealt on the streets of the State capital Panjim has drawn an adverse reaction from the people leading to the top police official in the State to appeal to the people not to judge the force by a single incident. He went on to say that the Central force had been sensitised to adopt citizen-friendly measures.
After over a week in lockdown, it is time to review what occurred during the past days and put the situation into perspective. The country went into a 14-hour ‘janta curfew’ on March 22 with adequate notice to take measures and keep stock of food. Before that ‘janta curfew’ could end, the Goa government extended the lockdown by three days till March 25, giving people no chance to make any purchases. On March 24 the Goa government again extended the lockdown to March 31, and in the evening the Union government announced a 21-day lockdown from that midnight onwards. The Centre, however, allowed stores selling essential items to remain open, a measure not followed at that time by Goa. The State on March 24 had said that home delivery systems would be in place by that Thursday, but on the appointed day this did not happen and when stores were allowed to open there were crowds outside them.
Does some rush in front of stores, which broke the social distancing conventions, as they opened after being shut for a couple of day, create a situation that warrants Central forces be brought to the State? It is amply clear that a large section of those who have gone out of their houses in the past few days have done so to purchase essential items – which is the very basic need of food for their survival. The home distribution system that the government had announced has obviously failed, and even senior citizens living alone have had to step out of the safety of their homes in search of provisions. Should those searching for food be treated in the manner in which the two young men were? That is a question that every minister of this government has to answer for themselves.
Besides, the arrival of the CISF also undermines the abilities of the State police force. The police has been doing a commendable job, aside from a stray incident or two in the past few days. The State police has all the necessary authority to enforce law and order. It, most importantly, understands the Goan community and the Goan way of life. Anyone who stands on the balconies of their houses will see that the streets are deserted. There are few vehicles moving about and there are police pickets at intervals that are questioning those on the road. Like in every society there will be those who will, as the chief minister said ‘loiter’ on the streets. Now these have to be dealt with sternly by the State police. Is the State police not capable of dealing with ‘loitering’ youth?
We are living in a time when the people want to hear a lot of positive news, they want to be reassured that their lives will return to normal. Goans have always been peaceful, they do follow the orders and advice of the government. Even in the present case, they are doing it. The government, in turn, has to respond in a positive manner.
