The peaceful conduct of elections to the local bodies and Thevar Jayanthi, among others, has improved the image of the police personnel here.
Many residents expressed their satisfaction that the events passed off peacefully. “It is impossible to accomplish this by one individual or some individuals. It is a team work of all the men and officers who were on duty,” said Inspector General and Commissioner of Police P. Kannappan here on Monday.
Presenting the commendation certificates to all the 3,000 personnel and officers, he said that be it local bodies' elections or Deepavali bandobust or Thevar Jayanthi celebrations, there were no untoward incidents. The visibility of police might have played a major role in thwarting untoward incidents, but the conscious and sincere efforts by every policeman helped in a big way.
The police had to get ready for one event after another for a span of more than a month. Soon after the polling and counting of votes was completed, Deepavali festivities started. Though there was a small gap between Deepavali and Thevar jayanthi and guru puja, since Bharataiya Janata Party leader L. K. Advani's ‘rath yatra' reached the city a day after the festival, the police personnel had little time to relax, officers said after receiving the certificates.
They said that under the leadership of Mr. Kannappan and with Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Thirunavukarasu, the city police ensured that Thevar Jayanthi celebration passed off peacefully. There was absolutely no problem from the beginning to the end of celebrations on Sunday.
Normally, the crowd used to hang around the Muthuramalinga Thevar statue at Goripalayam on their two-wheelers. But, this year, the police officers had conveyed to the leaders that two-wheelers would not be permitted.
The cooperation from them also came in for appreciation. Those who had come from far and near to offer respects to the leader did so without any hassle. The long queue around the statue was a first-of-its kind experience for many locals. Many people, including women, after paying respects to the Thevar statue, thanked the police for the bandobust arrangements, the police officers said.
