I, too, started running away from the charging crowds and realised that some policemen and women were running besides me. At one point, I spotted another journalist from Hindustan Times’ Chandigarh, who was having a tough time, given that the tear gas had made it difficult to breathe. We asked a police vehicle to give us a lift, but it just sped off as we made a failed attempt to climb into it. The mob was evidently being contained by the Central Reserve Police Force, while we moved towards the CBI court that had heavier paramilitary and police presence. We were finally given water by residents of Sector 2 and were taken into one of the homes to stay there till the situation calmed down. By now, the Army had been called in. In the madness, we forgot to question the cops on why they were running away from the mob — did they feel outnumbered? Or threatened, like us?