NEW DELHI -- In a brazen display of classist arrogance frequently meted out to security guards and other support staff in Delhi, a foreign national felt emboldened to slap a member of the security team of former prime minister Manmohan Singh on Friday. The provocation was that he was doing his job and stopped her from entering the venue after the dignitary for security reasons. The outrageous incident took place at a book launch event in Delhi on Friday.
Singh was on a panel discussion organized at the WWF India auditorium by the Ananta Aspen centre for the launch of The Making of Indian Diplomacy – A critique of euro-centrism, authored by Deep K. Datta-Ray.
In this video, shot by Press Trust of India photographer Vijay Verma, the guest is seen as arguing with the Delhi police constable that she had registered for the event and should be allowed in.
"He was part of Delhi Police's security detail for the former PM. It was not clear from where she was, though to me she seemed Turkish. She threatened to slap the policeman and then did it also. Sadly although it happened in front of other policemen, they did nothing," Verma said, adding that her identity should be easy for the police to find out since she had registered in advance for the event. Delhi police deploys a security detail for the movement of protectees of the elite Special Protection Group.
The unidentified woman first hurled abuses at the man, threatening to slap him, and then, unprovoked, slapped him before walking off in anger. The man seen shouting at her at the end was another guest trying to get inside like her, who was angered by her act. Watch the full video below.
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