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Punjab: Have intel to nail gangsters? Cash prizes up to ₹10 lakh await
A formal notification in this regard is likely to be issued formally by the home department in a day or two as Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann has already approved the file
In a fresh push to crack down on organised crime, the Punjab governor is set to roll out a reward policy offering cash prizes of up to ₹10 lakh to cops and members of the public for providing credible information about gangsters.
A formal notification in this regard is likely to be issued formally by the home department in a day or two as chief minister Bhagwant Mann has already approved the file, it is learnt.
Once notified, the scheme will come into force immediately and will be applicable across all units, districts, ranges and specialised wings of the Punjab Police. “The objective of the policy is to motivate citizens and police officials to assist law enforcement agencies with actionable intelligence against absconders and habitual offenders,” said a senior Punjab Police official involved in framing the policy.
Under the policy, a “wanted criminal” has been defined as any person involved in a crime and sought by the police, including absconders, proclaimed offenders and habitual criminals deliberately evading arrest.
The draft of the policy says rewards will be granted only for specific, credible and actionable information that directly facilitates identification, location and arrest of such criminals.
The quantum of reward will be decided on a case-to-case basis.
Factors such as the gravity of the offence, the risk undertaken by the informer, and the quality and significance of the information will be taken into account while deciding the reward amount, officers in the know added.
As per the policy, the powers to sanction rewards have been clearly defined at various levels.
Senior superintendents of police can approve rewards of up to ₹1 lakh, commissioners of police and range IGs/DIGs up to ₹1.5 lakh, heads of wings (SDGP/ADGP) up to ₹2 lakh, while rewards exceeding ₹2 lakh will require approval from the director general of police (DGP).
The policy also lays down a detailed procedure for sanctioning rewards. The immediate supervisory gazetted officer of the arrest or operation will submit a recommendation to the competent authority, certifying the role of the informer and ensuring confidentiality.
“Special emphasis has been laid on protecting the identity of informers and preventing duplication of rewards for the same information. We are hopeful that this will further encourage our fight against the gangsters and organised crime,” said a senior Punjab Police functionary.
1,186 associates of gangsters detained on Day 2 of Operation Prahaar
Punjab Police on Wednesday detained 1,186 associates of foreign-based gangsters as “Operation Prahaar” entered Day 2.
The 72-hour special operation was launched by the state police under the Punjab government’s campaign “Gangstran Te Vaar” to make Punjab a gangster-free state.
On the first day, police had detained 1,314 people whose activities were found to be suspicious and were suspected to have links with gangster cartels.
Disclosing details about Day 2 of the operation, special DGP (Law and Order) Arpit Shukla, who personally visited Mohali to supervise the ongoing action, said as many as 1,186 associates and abetters of foreign-based gangsters were rounded up across the state, taking the total number to 2,500.
He said thorough investigations were ongoing from various aspects, including financial networks, logistics, weapon supply chains and communication links, to completely dismantle the support system backing organised crime.
“Because it was an intellectual-based operation, a thorough probe is on and few arrests have also been made. Exact data about the arrests would be available after the operation is completed after 72 hours,” said a senior police functionary from the anti-gangster task force.
Notably, on Tuesday, director general of police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav had announced to launch the 72-hour-long crackdown, under which more than 2,000 police teams, comprising around 12,000 personnel, were deployed across the state to dismantle the ecosystem of organised crime.
