Senior police officers must visit stations; no ‘zero traffic’ rule for CM or Ministers, says Siddaramaiah

To ensure better law and order, senior officials must visit police stations regularly to supervise and monitor day-to-day affairs as per the police manual, Chief minister Siddaramaiah said here on Saturday.

To ensure better law and order, senior officials must visit police stations regularly to supervise and monitor day-to-day affairs as per the police manual, Chief minister Siddaramaiah said here on Saturday.

This is the second time Mr. Siddaramaiah issued the direction. Earlier too, he stressed on the need for senior police officials to regularly visit stations to improve policing work.

Addressing the senior police officers’ conference at the police headquarters on Saturday, he said SP and IG level officials will also be directly responsible if clubs, gambling, betting, and drugs are not stopped in their jurisdictions and action will be taken. He added that these can be avoided if they go to each station and carry out inspections.

Calling upon the traffic police to improve the traffic situation, Mr. Siddaramaiah said that like their law and order counterparts, the traffic police officers should monitor and supervise the situation from ground zero. The senior police officers should stand at the junctions along with the policemen and monitor the traffic instead of sitting in their AC cabins, he said. “I have told the police not to provide zero traffic facility for me or for any of the Ministers,” he added.

Mr. Siddaramaiah said there was no coordination between the law and order police personnel and the intelligence wing. The police should have better planning and treat every tip-off seriously, he said.

Citing the example of the Anjali murder case where the family had complained about threat from the accused, he said if the police had taken preventive measures, the murder could have prevented. Similarly, referring to the tragic death of five people who jumped into the lake fearing police arrest during a raid on gambling, he said the police should know about illegal activities in their jurisdiction and take preventive action.

He also asked the police to monitor social media and take strict action against those spreading hatred and disturbing law and order. He said police should monitor drug menace affecting the youth and children.