Uttar Pradesh director general of police (DGP) Vijaya Kumar, a 1988-batch Indian Police Service officer and civil engineer, has dismissed opposition allegations about selective targeting of criminals keeping in mind their caste and religion.
In an interview, he also spoke on various other issues related to crime and policing, besides the elusive Shaishta Parveen, the wife of slain mafioso Atiq Ahmad.
It was his first detailed interaction with the media since taking charge as the Uttar Pradesh police chief on May 31. He also shared his priorities like ‘Operation Conviction’ launched statewide recently.
The Opposition often accuses the UP police of acting against selective mafioso—keeping in mind their caste and religion. What is your take on it?
I don’t want to comment on the past working, but action will be taken against every criminal mafioso without having second thoughts about his caste or religion. As a cop, every mafioso is a criminal to me.
Have the state police been given a specific timeframe to nail all those on the list of 69 top criminals prepared by the state government?
{{/usCountry}}Have the state police been given a specific timeframe to nail all those on the list of 69 top criminals prepared by the state government?
{{/usCountry}}No there is no specific timeframe for it. Action against criminal elements and mafiosi is a continuous process and it has been done for the past few years. I will ensure that this continues more aggressively.
Gunning down criminals in encounters, as has been done in the past few years, or any other specific strategy against criminals?
There is no specific strategy, but I am focused on getting them convicted and punished through the court of law. For which we have launched ‘Operation Conviction’ in which every district police chief has been directed to intensify monitoring of cases against the mafiosi and expedite court proceedings against them.
The most wanted criminals at present are the slain mafioso Atiq Ahmad’s wife Shaishta Parveen and his close aide Guddu Muslim, who are key accused in the sensational killings of lawyer Umesh Pal and his two police bodyguards on February 24. But the UP police have failed to trace them even after over four months. Are the UP police not being serious about their arrest?
No, not at all. We are equally serious about their arrest as acting against other criminal mafiosi and gangsters.
Efforts to trace and arrest them are going on and hopefully they will be arrested soon.
Several incidents have been reported in the recent past where people have committed suicide over police action or delayed action. Rape survivor or family members of rape survivors have ended their lives over police inaction in some cases. What steps have been taken to curb such incidents or make police personnel act on common man’s complaints?
We have taken stern action against erring police personnel whenever such incidents have come to our knowledge. Even the services of some cops were terminated and they were arrested and sent to jail. A stern message has been sent down the line that nobody will be spared if there is an incident of victims being chased from the police station or outpost. All district police chiefs and other supervisory officers have been asked to do regular monitoring of working at police station levels.
Of late, we have seen a spurt in crime on streets and crime against women in cities like Lucknow. Are there any plans to curb such incidents?
We have recently started ‘Operation Drishti’ to bring urban areas or crime hot spots under round the clock video surveillance. Under this, the district level officers have been asked to encourage and rope in business installations like petrol pumps, liquor shops, showrooms, traders’ organizations as well as educational institutes to put in place CCTV cameras. Police officials will educate them about installation of CCTVs strategically so that these may be help to them as well as they could be used to control crime and work out crime incidents.
What is the strategy to counter incidents like forced religious conversion through online gaming applications as reported in Ghaziabad and jihad through social media as it has surfaced after some recent arrests of highly radicalised persons?
It is a serious issue, but the Anti-Terror Squad and cybercrime wings of UP police are studying the pattern to prepare for a detailed work plan to counter it.
If required, the police will launch an awareness programme and alert parents to remain vigilant about their child’s activities.