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Cops involved in drug trade to be dismissed, property attached: CM
According to chief minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, over 10,000 policemen have been transferred to ensure there is no nexus between cops and smugglers. Same number of policemen will be recruited to strengthen the police force, he adds.
Reiterating the state government’s commitment to check the drug menace, chief minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Tuesday said any cop, if found indulged in drug trade, would be dismissed and trafficking accused’s properties attached within one of month of arrest.
Announcing tough steps to break the “nexus” between cops and smugglers, the CM, while chairing a meeting with senior superintendents of police (SSPs), said over 10,000 cops had been transferred across the state. Besides, 10,000 fresh recruitments would be made in the police force, he said.
Asserting that the state will introduce several policing reforms for which a multi-pronged strategy has been formed, the CM said it had come to light that lower-level cops were sometimes involved with peddlers. “During the Lok Sabha elections, cash and drugs in a huge quantity were seized in Punjab. We have clues where did those came from and what their destinations were. We have the details,” he said while referring to the nexus.
The transfers have been made at the lowest level who have been squatting on their posts for long. “The black sheep in the police are being identified. Such personnel will be dismissed and questioned to find out how long this was going on,” he said.
According to the CM, the decision to create 10,000 new posts in the force was taken to enhance the efficiency of the police. “It will help in checking the crime and also create jobs for youth in the coming days. The police have been equipped with the best available technology to maintain law and order. The Sadak Surakhya Force, launched by the state government, is running successfully as it has saved over 2,000 lives after road mishaps,” he highlighted.
Urging the officers to transfer the war against drugs into a mass movement, CM Mann said gone are the days when the state government was being run on a “commission basis”. “It is being run on a mission mode. A detailed strategy has been formed to tackle smugglers, gangsters and terrorists who are using drones for operating in the state,” he said.
Terming it a nation’s war, he said not even a single ounce of drugs was being produced in the state. “It is being smuggled from across the borders and from other states. Police officers have been asked to respect the people who visit the police stations for their routine work. The SSPs will be personally held accountable for undue harassment of general public in their respective districts,” he said.
Besides, the police officers were asked to give due respect to the MLAs and other elected representatives. “The state government has already adopted a zero-tolerance policy towards corruption and drugs. The state will not leave any person involved in such heinous crimes irrespective of how affluent he might be,” the chief minister asserted.
