The "massive" deployment of army during the Jat quota stir in Harayna was enough to ward off a small-scale attack by an invading army, the Prakash Singh Committee, which has indicted several top state police and civil officials for failing to control the riots that left 30 people dead, has said.
"The deployment of army in Haryana was on a massive scale. A maximum of 74 Columns (slightly over 5100 men) were deployed. This would roughly work out to about 12 battalions. It is a formidable strength, enough to ward off a small scale attack in a particular sector by an invading army," the report said.
The Committee, headed by Singh, a former Uttar Pradesh police and BSF chief, had harsh words for the state's BJP government. It said the Manohar Lal Khattar government would never look back "with any sense of pride on these developments" and that the administration had "withered" away.
"It is extremely unfortunate that army had to be deployed on such a large scale to deal with internal disturbances...," it said.
Noting that the presence of army did not make any impact, the panel said there "have been disturbing whispers" that the rioters were not particularly scared of the army.
"The Additional Chief Secretary (Home) of the State had no hesitation in saying that 'the agitators were not daunted by the presence of the army'", the report said, adding it was "not a happy situation and should cause us concern."
The Committee said, "If this (agitators not being daunted by army) continues to happen, it will be good neither for the army nor for the internal security situation of the country.
"Every force has a defined role and they should be able to perform that under normal circumstances. If there are any difficulties or constraints in the performance of the police, those difficulties need to be addressed and the constraints removed. Army should be called as a last resort only when all other efforts have failed," the panel said deprecating the use of armed forces in tackling internal disturbances.
Questioning appointment of Deputy Commissioners for "extraneous considerations", the report also called for a review of the policy under which a Deputy Commissioner can requisition army in aid of civil power.
"At present, any Deputy Commissioner can requisition army in aid of civil power. Looking at the calibre and the quality of district officers these days, and considering that most of them are appointed not for their merit but for extraneous considerations, it is necessary that this provision be given a second look.
"The Committee feels that army should be sucked into internal security duties only if there is a well-considered request from the Home Department of the State," the report said.
