On Tuesday, Singh hit back at a group of protesting Bengal BJP leaders over a “Khalistani” slur hurled at him and asked them to “leave his faith alone”. The incident happened when the group, led by Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, was on its way to unrest-hit Sandeskhali and was stopped by the police at Dhamakhali in North 24 Parganas district.
As the video of the incident went viral, support for Singh poured in from all corners. 2012-batch IPS officer Mercy John, who is posted as Superintendent of Railway Police, Sealdah, was among the police officers who backed Singh.
Reacting to the West Bengal Police’s statement to express solidarity with Singh, she wrote on X: “I faced the same…every time encountered them during law and order…after reading my name plate, (I) used (to) get religious remark(s). More power to you Jaspreet, we are with you (sic).”
Talking to The Indian Express on Wednesday, she said: “Comments like “Aapni Christian apni ki janben? (You are a Christian… what would you know)” or “Don’t teach us, you are an outsider” are very common to me. It hurts when people read your name plate and say such things.”
“There were several times when I was on duty and people read my name plate, they used to call me an outsider for being a Christian,” she said.
“I am happy with the way he (Jaspreet Singh) reacted. Usually we hear such things and are so busy with handling law and order that we don’t react but it needs to stop somewhere. You may not like my style of working, you can have differences of opinion and can address my post and object to what I am saying but reading my name plate and saying such things is very sickening and against the constitution. It is good that someone like Jaspreet Singh reacted to it so firmly,” she added.
Mercy shared that she was posted as the Deputy Commissioner (Airport Division) years under the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate for over three years.
During the TET protests two years ago, she alleged that there were several personal attacks from protesters. Recalling one such incident from Bidhannagar, she said, “During one of those protests, a woman politician looked at my nameplate and said “Oh! She is a Christian?” She then called me an outsider and asked me what I was doing there.”
For the past 11 months, she has been posted in Sealdah.
Tuesday’s incidents have evoked a sharp reaction from IPS officers of Bengal cadre, many of whom believe Singh’s reaction was a “spontaneous” one and that there should be stern action against in such cases.
“One cannot let such appalling behaviour slide. The law should apply to anyone who feels that those boundaries can be stretched according to their whims and fancies. There are special provisions in the SC/ST Act which penalise such casteist slurs. Similarly, Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code takes care of communally coloured statements. I wonder why the National Commission for Minorities hasn’t taken suo motu cognisance of this incident till now. Political activity is fine. Police are trained to deal with hostile behaviour but it cannot be extended to domains of caste and religion,” said a senior IPS officer.
“It is a criminal act and once stern action is taken, a message will go to people,” said another IPS officer.
“How one deals with such attacks varies from person to person. If I were in Jaspreet’s shoes, I would have also protested. I am an official on duty. Someone may question me that by stopping politicians and imposing 144, I am overstepping or I can be dragged to court. But no one has the right to abuse me or attack me personally. We must stop this practice,” said a senior Kolkata Police officer.