Uphold the law

It is not just the failure of policing on Saturday. Mumbai is the site of a larger governance failure,especially on the law-and-order front. It has been marked by a near-total political abdication by ruling parties that repeatedly cave in to attacks on “Western culture”,for instance,and condone violence on Valentine’s Day. The mayhem that was allowed to rage at Azad Maidan also throws into sharp relief the exaggerated and misdirected machismo of Vasant Dhoble,the assistant commissioner of police who threatens restaurants,bars and cafes and rounds up civilians.

At another level,the Congress-led government in Maharashtra has mirrored the failures of its counterpart in Assam in its response to crisis. As in Assam,warning signals were clearly not read. Also,like Assam,this was followed by the failure of the state’s resolve to manage and mitigate the fallout. As a result,the terrible Kokrajhar violence,which has claimed a heavy toll and displaced over four lakh people,has been allowed to sow its first seeds outside Assam in Mumbai and the trouble could spread,if Pune is any indication. While the UPA’s rule has been marked by the absence of large communal-ethnic conflagrations,it must know that the failure by Congress-led governments to put a timely stop to violence will sully that record.