A set of ranking officers were reported to have conveyed to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday the side of IPS officers in the debate linked to the alleged practice of vassalage in the force.
A top officer said the opportunity to represent their side came at a security meeting chaired by Mr. Vijayan at his office in the Secretariat. State Police Chief Loknath Behera was present.
The alleged attack by a ranking official’s daughter on her father’s official driver last week had precipitated the controversy that cast the Police Department in a poor light and put the Kerala Police Association apparently at odds with the IPS Officers’ Association. The issue had caught Mr. Vijayan’s attention, prompting him to call a meeting of District Police Chiefs and above on June 26 to discuss the matter flagged up by the association of subordinate officers.
The IPS officers told the Chief Minister that they wanted the government to view the attack as an isolated incident and not as a norm in the force.
The senior officers also furnished the actual figures of officers deployed as personal security officers, office assistants and camp aides to IPS officers.
Exaggerated numbers
The officers told Mr. Vijayan that the figures that appeared in the media were exaggerated numbers.
The officers said officers and their camp aides worked in tandem and there had seldom been any problems of misemployment as suggested in the media.
They highlighted the need for IPS officers in law and order to have PSOs and police drivers round the clock given the 24-hour nature of their duty. They said the Chief Minister was “very receptive” and reportedly said he perceived a conspiracy to demoralise the force by maligning its officers.
