Meerut: Additional Director General of Police (ADG), Meerut, Prashant Kumar on Saturday said that the police officer who is being heard in a purported video asking protesters to go to Pakistan was just trying to control the violent situation as the demonstrators were raising slogans hailing the neighbouring country.
Speaking to a media agency, Kumar said, "It is clear from the video that stones were being pelted, anti-India slogans and slogans hailing the neighbouring country were raised by the protesters at the spot. The officer only asked them to stop pelting stones and they can go there (Pakistan) if wanted to."
Asserting that the incident did not happen under normal circumstances, the ADG Meerut said, "PFI and SDFI pamphlets were distributed there. That day, the situation of Meerut was not good as lakhs of people had gathered on the roads. The officers showed restraint, did not open fire and controlled the situation."
The response from the ADG Meerut comes after a purported video went viral on social media where a police officer can be seen abusing and telling the protestors demonstrating against the Citizenship Amendment Act to "go to Pakistan".
Meanwhile, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also attacked the BJP over the incident accusing the party, which is in power in the state, of spreading communalism in government institutions.
"The Constitution of India does not allow the use of this language with any citizen. When you are an officer in an important position this responsibility increases. BJP has spread so much communalism in these institutions that today officers have no respect for the constitution they swore to protect," she had tweeted.
