‘Work fearlessly, I will take responsibility’: CRPF chief backs personnel after RAF pellet gun row
New Delhi: Central Reserve Police Force Director General Gyanendra Pratap Singh has asked personnel to perform their duties “fearlessly” and promised to accept responsibility for decisions taken in the bona fide discharge of duty.
Singh made the remarks at the CRPF’s investiture ceremony, days after personnel of its riot-control unit, the Rapid Action Force, clashed with protesters in Delhi during demonstrations over examination paper leaks.
The RAF’s use of pellet guns during the protest drew criticism and allegations of excessive force.
‘Will take responsibility’
Addressing CRPF personnel, Singh said, “As the Director General of the CRPF, I want to assure each one of you that whether it is an operational battalion or a law-and-order unit, whatever decisions you take and whatever actions you carry out in the bonafide discharge of your duties, I take responsibility for all those decisions and actions.”
“Continue to perform your duties fearlessly. Wherever responsibility or accountability needs to be taken, I will take it as the Director General,” he said.
The remarks sought to reassure personnel serving in operational and law-and-order units, where officers often have to take quick decisions under difficult conditions.
RAF action under review
Days before the ceremony, Singh told news agency ANI that the CRPF would conduct a “professional post-event assessment” of the RAF’s action against the protesters. The RAF operates under the CRPF and specialises in riot control, crowd management and handling civil unrest.
A professional assessment after every major operation forms part of the CRPF’s standard operating procedure. The review will examine the circumstances in which RAF personnel used pellet guns. It will also study the conditions that led to the action against the protesters. The assessment will trace the “sequence of events and whether the use of the pellet guns was in accordance with established protocols.”
CRPF’s operational role
The CRPF operates across India and works with state police forces in different security situations. The force handles law-and-order duties and takes part in counter-insurgency and anti-Maoist operations. Its personnel have fought insurgents in parts of the Northeast and Maoists in central India.
The Commando Battalions for Resolute Action, known as CoBRA, specialise in guerrilla and jungle warfare operations.
Manipur encounter row
The CRPF also faced controversy after it killed 10 suspected Kuki insurgents during an encounter in Manipur in November 2024. Police said the suspected insurgents had attacked a village in Jiribam district near the Assam border. Kuki groups disputed the police account and claimed those killed were “volunteers”.