: Kerala Police Chief-designate T.P. Senkumar on Monday said disfranchised youth who felt a surreal appeal for left wing extremism posed a graver threat to democratic society than Maoists who bore arms against the State.
Speaking at the 32{+n}{+d}State conference of the Kerala Police Association, Mr. Senkumar said the law of the land banned Maoism under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. The police were legally bound to take action against such “brainwashed” activists even if no arms were found in their possession.
He said world over, educated youth who felt a strong sense of alienation from society for various political, social, personal and ideological reasons were drawn to vicious religious extremism and Kerala was no exception.
In a speech that enunciated his approach to law enforcement, Mr. Senkumar said he was against outsourcing core policing functions. He said the decision to contract out traffic regulation to Home Guards was erroneous. “I do not see any traffic regulation on the roads,” he said.
Community policing
He said community policing was not about “running budget restaurants or paying power bills.” The police had over the years distanced themselves from their core functions. “How regularly do sub-divisional officers inspect police stations? How can a Sub-Inspector who handles more than 2,500 crime cases a year ensure quality in investigation?” he asked.
Wealth was getting increasingly concentrated on those running jewellery, textile, and hospital and liquor business. Such wide income disparities fuelled crime. Environmental crime was a potent threat to society. The real estate business had also become criminalised.
Better pay and service conditions could check corruption in the force to a great extent. Human rights of law enforcers would be respected and upheld. The sacrifices of uniformed personnel took the country forward, he said.
Former High Court judge C. N. Ramachandran Nair also spoke.
