East Delhi cops allegedly get metallic batons, arm covers

Delhi Police said they had no formal order to equip the forces with batons as soon as the pictures were circulated on social media,

Photos of policemen of east Delhi's Shahdara emerged on Monday who can be seen carrying sword-like metal batons along with metal arm covers. Senior officers said the batons were being used 'as an experiment' and were handed over to 10-15 policemen so far, reported by Hindustan Times. Several cops were injured on Republic Day and the station house officer of Alipur police station got injured by a sword in the clashes at the Singhu border on Friday. "It’s a makeshift arrangement to minimize injury in case of a sword attack. It is not an aggressive but defensive mechanism. The baton is 4-5 feet long and has a metallic arm guard that protects the person holding it against the attack by a sword,” reportedly, the officer said. “This [the metal forearm cover] can be used to stop an attack by a sharp-edged weapon. The guard and the baton are lightweight making it easy to carry,” he added.

However, the batons are not being officially procured yet, according to another officer. “We are not officially procuring it yet, the batons being used on an experimental basis,” said another officer. The pictures were widely circulated on social media following which the Delhi Police said on Tuesday that the policemen in the images were from one part of Delhi and they took the initiative on their own and denied any formal orders to incorporate new metal armoury, NDTV reported.

"The images were from Shahdara district. A local officer asked for these metal lathis without seeking approval from any senior officers," reportedly, said a Delhi Police spokesman. "As soon as senior officers found out, these were taken back. There is no scheme to provide policemen with steel lathis." The Delhi Police has clarified that there was no such formal order to equip forces with these weapons, the report said.