Police chief transfer mired in controversy

Congress, BJP criticise government decision

In this file photo, outgoing Kozhikode City Police Commissioner Uma Behra welcomes the then new incumbent, J. Jayanath, at the City Police Commissioner’s office. Photo: K. Ragesh -

The decision to remove Kozhikode city police chief J. Jayanath abruptly has raised concerns in the Police Department but the State government says that the transfer is only a routine affair.

Many believe that his handling of the case of bomb attack on the CPI(M) district headquarters last week was perhaps the final straw for party leaders to oust him from the post. Mr. Jayanath did not find favour with CPI(M) leaders ever since he took charge in January.

Police sources said that so far no one had been arrested in the case wherein an attempt on the life of party district secretary P. Mohanan was made. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and CPI(M) State secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan had alleged that the motive of the assailants was to finish off Mr. Mohanan. Incidentally, the attack on CPI(M) office came against the backdrop of the attempt to manhandle party general secretary Sitaram Yechury in New Delhi by two Hindu Sena activists.

Opposition parties, including the Congress and the BJP, have questioned the timing of the transfer. Leaders of both parties have alleged that Mr. Jayanath has been chucked out since the IPS officer did not fall in line with the CPI(M) district leadership views and some of his decisions had rattled them.

DCC president T. Siddique and BJP State general secretary K. Surendran have said that the Home Department transferred the officer as the bomb attack case was going on the right track.

A special police team constituted for the purpose had not been able to find any clinching evidence relating to the explosion that occurred at 1.15 a.m. on Friday. None of the neighbours had heard the sound of the blast of a steel bomb that took place within the compound.

Also, pressure has been mounting on the government to remove Mr. Jayanath after the city police registered a case against Sunni leader Kanthapuram A.P. Aboobacker Musliyar on the charge of cheating students of the Markaz Institute of Engineering and Technology by offering invalid courses. This apart, some attribute the displacement to the police cases filed against Aimfill International Campus for cheating students.