Times of India: Chandigarh: Saturday, May 11, 2013.
In a startling revelation, it has come out that
Punjab government has submitted a "false" affidavit to Central
government and Supreme Court claiming to have undertaken police reforms by
setting up a police establishment board, police complaints authority and state
security commission. However, in reply to an RTI application by leader of
opposition, Sunil Jakhar, Punjab's home and justice department has said that
the government has not set up any police complaint authority.
Armed with the reply by home department, Jakhar
said that he is taking legal recourse to nail the government's false affidavit
to Central government. "The mindset of policemen in Punjab is that they
are above the law and this was demonstrated when six cops beat up an unarmed
woman in full public view in Amritsar. The victim had to come to me seeking
justice as there was no platform in the state where she could be heard against
the policemen. That is why I moved an application to know the status of police
complaint authority," Jakhar said.
The anomaly in the reply of state government came
to light when it was compared with the answer of Central government's home
department on March 5, 2013 to a question by MP Jayant Chaudhary on police
reforms.
In its reply, the Union home ministry said that an
affidavit has been filed in the Supreme Court on January 2, 2013, on behalf of
Central government about the measures taken by various states on police
reforms. In the affidavit, Punjab's name figures among states which have set up
police complaints authorities, apart from police establishment boards and state
security commissions.
Questioning the authenticity of Punjab
government's affidavit, Jakhar said, "How can an elected state government
lie so blatantly to the Central government? The chief minister is directly
responsible for this as he is personally overseeing police officials' transfers
when the power, as per Supreme Court's directions, should be vested in a Police
Establishment Board."
Spelling out his future action plan in the matter,
Jakhar said Congress will take this up as an issue, seeking resignation of
chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and deputy chief minister Sukhbir Badal, who
is also the home minister. "Police transfers are being controlled by
politicians and even the director general of police is not being taken into
confidence regarding transfers. This is why police force is reduced to a tool
in the hands of ruling alliance," he said.
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