Top Indian court slams police, protest organizer over June clashes

Feb 23, 2012, 12:50 GMT

New Delhi - India's Supreme Court on Thursday said both police and a protest organizer were to blame for clashes at a New Delhi rally in June in which one person died, news reports said.

It ordered the police and the fund of yoga guru Baba Ramdev to pay 500,000 rupees (10,160 dollars) in compensation to the victim's family, and 50,000 rupees to each person injured after the anti-corruption protest turned violent.

The police, who were to pay 75 per cent of the money, showed excessive force in breaking up the protest, the court was quoted as saying by the Times of India online.

'The incident shows might of the state which strikes at the foundation of democracy,' judges BS Chauhan and Swatanter Kumar were quoted as saying by broadcaster CNN-IBN.

The judges also recommended that individual officers involved be prosecuted, the report said.

Ramdev had failed to maintain calm among his 30,000 supporters who were demonstrating for stronger anti-corruption measures, the court said.

Ramdev has demanded action against government officials he says ordered the police crackdown.

The police claims Ramdev incited his followers to violence, leaving them no other option but to deploy force.