Kerala Police is the best force in the country, allegations of politicisation baseless, says CM

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala Police is one of the best forces in India, said Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. He voiced the claim while replying to the notice for an adjournment motion moved by Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan. The chief minister rejected the opposition's allegation that the influence of criminals on the police is increasing through politicization. The chief minister clarified in the assembly that the allegations are baseless and the government is taking strong measures including termination of police officers involved in serious crimes from service.

The chief minister said that it is widely accepted that the law and order situation in Kerala is improving. As per the survey conducted by the Indian Police Foundation on corruption in the police force, the Kerala Police has been recognized for its honesty and efficiency. Officials of the state forensic laboratory were awarded for their excellence in collecting electronic evidence. Apart from this, many recognitions have been received by the Kerala Police officers. Not saying all this here.

The police are working very efficiently in the investigation of a case. No one can say on the basis of facts that there is political interference in any investigation or that the investigation is ineffective. The police were able to nab the accused in all public attention cases and to file chargesheets on time.

Some recent examples are the Uthra murder case in Pathanamthitta, Sharon murder case in Parassala, Thiruvananthapuram and the human sacrifice incident in Elanthoor, Pathanamthitta. In the first case, a timely investigation was conducted and the accused has been punished. The police are taking all steps to investigate the case effectively and scientifically. With the rise in cybercrime, special police stations have been started in every district to investigate cyber cases. Along with this, a special wing has been formed to investigate financial crimes.

It was during this period that women sub-inspectors were directly appointed to the police force for the first time. A special wing has also been arranged to prevent violence against women and children and ensure their safety.

The allegation of politicization in the police force is baseless. Since 2016, 828 criminal cases have been registered in the state against police officials. Investigations were conducted in all incidents of allegations against the police officers and criminal cases were registered for all the allegations found to be true and strong legal action was taken against the accused.

The government is taking strong measures including dismissing police officers involved in serious crimes from service. Eight police officers of various ranks involved in criminal cases including one in 2017, two in 2018, one in 2019 and two in 2020 have been terminated from service. Also, two police officers convicted in criminal cases and two other police officers convicted in corruption cases have been removed from service in 2022.

There has been no incident where no action was taken in any of the specific incidents pointed in the resolution. In all cases appropriate steps have been taken after entrusting the investigation to top officials.

The notice moved said there are criminal cases against 828 police personnel. This is 1.56 percent of the police force having 55,000 members. The fact that emerges from this is that 98.44 percent of police personnel are not involved in such crimes.

The restraint exercised by the state police in the context of the recent protests in Vizhinjam is exemplary.

It should be remembered that the general public will not accept the attempt to denigrate the police force whose service during the floods of 2018 and the Covid epidemic faced by the state, was lauded.