Resentment among IPS officers against proposed Police Act

Arjun RaghunathFirst Published : 19 Mar 2010 05:06:00 AM ISTLast Updated :

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Resentment is brewing up among the police officers in the State against the proposed Kerala Police Act.


The IPS Officers’ Association is planning to meet Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan in the coming days and express their strong resentment towards various provisions in the Act, it is reliably learnt.

The Cabinet on Wednesday approved the Bill of the proposed Act. The Government is planning to introduce the Bill in the current session of the Assembly and refer it to the Select Committee.

According to sources in the Police Department the draft, which was cleared by the Cabinet, contained various provisions that are against the stated intentions of bringing in professionalism in the functioning of the police.

Moreover, the guidelines issued by the Supreme Court on police reforms are not followed in the draft cleared by the Cabinet, it is alleged.

A committee headed by DGP Jacob Punnoose had prepared a draft of the Act and submitted it to the Government last year. However, the Government had made significant alterations in the draft that has shaken its basic structure. The Government did not hold any serious consultations with the police officials while vetting the initial draft, sources said. The IPS Officers’ Association which met here the other day had decided to call on the Home Minister and raise their concerns. Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau Director K.P.Somarajan, who is the president of the Association, and IG Intelligence T.K.Vinod Kumar, who is the secretary of the Association, are likely to lead the delegation.

The Association officebearers preferred to be tightlipped on the matter.

The Law Reforms Commission headed by Justice V.R.Krishna Iyer had submitted a draft to the Government in 2007. But the Government did not consider it.

Several human rights organisations, including the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative headed by noted social worker Maja Daruwala, had earlier submitted a memorandum to the Government pointing out various flaws in the draft prepared by the Jacob Punnoose committee.