G20 logo at IGI Airport, Delhi.
Credit: PTI Photo
In the wake of intelligence reports that agitations might erupt ahead of the G20 Summit in Delhi, the Delhi Police is set to be equipped with chains and bolt cutters to tackle unusual ways of demonstrations. It has been noted that in the West, agitators chain themselves to immovable objects at protest sites, making it difficult for security personnel to remove them.
Intelligence inputs suggested that Tibetans might hold protests against Chinese President Xi Jinping over China’s occupation of Tibet and raise demands for Tibet’s freedom, though fresh reports also suggest that Xi Jinping could skip the Summit. There are inputs regarding plans to target Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in her hotel as well.
Sources said that the Police have been shown videos of how protestors behaved in past summits. Two senior officers privy to the developments said to Times of India that they had studied the patterns of protests in Hong Kong and one in Osaka in 2019, and then decided on their plan of action.
Police will also be deployed with “moving store houses” of anti-riot equipment, called Vikrant, sources said. These trucks, which will be placed at about six locations around the venue, will contain tear gas shells, batons, and gear for 100 policemen.
Police have divided the location around the venue into 11 zones, each to be headed by an Additional DCP rank Officer. "The focus is to curb snap demonstrators. Every district will have a reserve force with experience in handling law and order arrangements. Five to six police stations have been identified in the outer north, outer and Rohini districts where protestors will be kept,” an officer added.