Hyderabad: Police Clarify Viral Video of Advocate-Police Altercation at Attapur Station
Hyderabad: Police have clarified a viral video showing an altercation between police personnel and advocates at Attapur Police Station, saying the footage circulating on social media does not show the events that preceded the confrontation.
The video, which surfaced on social media on September 22, appears to show a police officer attempting to take a phone from an advocate. A second officer is also seen objecting when a woman advocate records the incident.
According to Rajendranagar Deputy Commissioner of Police S Sreenivas, the confrontation followed an incident involving an accused person who was being held at the police station.
Police said relatives or people accompanying the accused allegedly attempted to pass gutka or pan masala packets to him along with a water bottle while he was in the lock-up. CCTV footage reportedly captured a man approaching the lock-up and attempting to hand over the items.
The police subsequently objected to the incident and confronted those involved, according to the police version. The advocates, who had reportedly come to the station in connection with the accused's bail, then attempted to record the confrontation on their phones.
Police objected to the recording, leading to the argument and subsequent altercation, the DCP said.
Different accounts emerge
The viral footage has prompted concerns among members of the legal community, with reports alleging that police personnel attempted to seize the phones of the advocates and behaved aggressively during the confrontation. These allegations have not independently established that the officers acted unlawfully.
Police, meanwhile, have maintained that the circulating footage does not provide the full context of the incident.
According to another local report, the dispute did not result in a separate case being registered and senior officials subsequently spoke with members of the Bar Association.
The issue was later resolved between the parties, according to the police version. The accused person was also released after obtaining bail.
The exact sequence of events remains dependent on the full CCTV footage and accounts from the people involved.
