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Bombay police in a piquant situation

The 39,000-strong Bombay police force today finds itself in a piquant situation with the state political leadership appearing bent on thrashing out 'ego hassles' at the cost of an understaffed police force and hapless citizens fighting for survival.

With Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal putting the onus of arresting Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray on the police, the city police commissioner and his staff have perhaps been reluctantly forced to move to centre-stage.

According to a senior police official, ''The settling of scores by politicians has cast unnecessary psychological pressure on both citizens and the police, who were already under pressure and undue stress.''

The police, which has geared up to face any eventuality following the arrest of Thackeray, continues to bear the brunt of an 'ego war', with Nationalist Congress Party chief and erstwhile Sena leader, Chhagan Bhujbal and the Sena chief threatening each other of dire consequences on the 'arrest' issue.

''If violence breaks out, lives and properties of people will be at risk. Who will accept responsibility of compensating these losses,'' asked a senior official.

''By arresting the Sena chief we are not going to gain anything. And by not arresting him we are not going to lose anything either,'' he said.

PTI

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