Police yet to act against rogue cop who threatened Shabnam Hashmi

Delhi Police is yet to act on the complaint filed by social activist Shabnam Hashmi based on a phone conversation with a man who claimed to be a sub-inspector at the Lajpat Nagar Police Station. She had written to Police Commissioner Amulya Patnaik and Deputy Commissioner of Police Romil Baaniya.

The man, who called himself Sandeep Malik, had abused and threatened Hashmi when she had called him to enquire about a call made by Malik on Friday to Mohd. Haseen, an autorickshaw driver.

“We will initiate action as soon as we get the mail. That is definite enough, but it may take some time. What we do know is that there is no sub-inspector named Sandeep Malik at the Lajpat Nagar Police Station. There is a constable by that name and what we do know is that he has not made the phone call. The number that was used to make the call is not his number. I can give you any further detail only after we probe the matter,” said Baaniya.

Hashmi was approached by Haseen’s wife, Mobina, who had attended sewing classes at Pehchan, an NGO run by Hashmi. Malik had called Haseen and ordered him to show up at the Lajpat Nagar Police Station because there was a case filed against him there. When Haseen informed him that he had never been to Lajpat Nagar because he is a resident of Jaitpur Extn near Badarpur, the police officer’s tone changed.

“I wasn’t at home when the call came, so my seven-year-old daughter answered the call. When someone on the line asked her about our whereabouts, my wife decided to speak to the person. The police officer asked her about my work, my timings, our address and by then I had reached home. When I spoke to the police officer, he immediately changed his tone and was rude. He said a complaint has been filed against my name in Lajpat Nagar, but he refused to give the reason. This got us worried because we weren’t sure what would happen once I went to the police station,” said Haseen. They then spoke to Hashmi about the phone call.

Hashmi then rang the number to know the reason why Haseen was summoned, and the police officer was rude and abusive. “Since I did not have a phone recorder, I disconnected the call and downloaded a recorder before calling back on the same number after 15 minutes. He called me back four times while I was downloading the application but I disconnected the calls.

In the conversation, Malik can be heard telling Hashmi that he can finish her off in case she doesn’t have an ID proof or Aadhar Card. Even when Hashmi clarifies that she is a social activist, the police officer cuts her off only to state that they have the right to kill anyone who doesn’t have the documents. The officer states that there’s a campaign to “gherao and maaro” (surround and kill) those who do not have the necessary documents. There’s a notice to this effect in all police stations and it can be seen even in the Lajpat Nagar Police Station, claimed Malik.

Hashmi had organised a press conference on Saturday at Constitution Club to draw attention to the issue, but the response from the police has been far from heartening.